Adventures of the Templars Book 5: The Scars That Never Heal
by Ashlyn Dubreas
Summary: Some scars can heal while others will never do so. What will happen when the Padawans are faced with decisions that none of them ever thought they would ever have to make? Who will become one of the Lost? Join Jedi Padawan Ashlyn Dubreas and her friends as they continue their attempts to end this new Sith Empire before it becomes an even greater threat to the entire Galaxy.
1. Letter from the Author

_Dear Readers,_

 _This is the fifth instalment of my Adventures of the Templars series, "The Scars That Never Heal". Please make sure to read the previous four books before reading this one as it will not make much sense. The first book is entitled "The Founder's Beginning", the second is entitled "The Deadly Crisis", the third is entitled "The Dark Is Rising" and the fourth is entitled "The Lost Children"._

 _I do not own Star Wars or any of the characters that were already created in the canon but I do own all the original characters._

 _Please read and enjoy the series, most importantly PLEASE review. I love to have feedback but please make sure it is constructive feedback._

 _Yours Sincerely,_  
 _Ashlyn Dubreas._


	2. Chapter 1-Improvements

**Improvements**

Ashlyn swung her green lightsaber blade around to block a cut to her left shoulder from Serin's silver blade which made swift contact. The two lightsabers made a resounding clash as per normal when one blade hit another as Ashlyn aimed a strike at Serin's left leg. Serin blocked it with ease as the four lightsaber blades were now grinding against each other. Using this friction Ashlyn pushed off and turned away from Serin to relieve the pressure on their muscles as well as to get out of the tight hold.  
"That was quite impressive," Serin complimented his opponent, "Not everyone can use their right lightsaber to block a blow to their left shoulder and still manage to go for a leg strike with their left lightsaber," he added in disbelief.  
"And why are you so surprised that I can achieve that?" Ashlyn inquired in a guarded fashion as the two Padawans circled each other.  
Serin shrugged, "No real reason," he said as Ashlyn bought her two lightsabers in a downward strike, crossed over each other, which the older of the two blocked with both his lightsabers in the same crossing position.  
"Wrong move," Serin said as he pushed the two blades up, dropped into a crouch and swiped his leg out knocking Ashlyn off her feet.  
Ashlyn's lightsabers deactivated as they flew out of her hands and went flying across the polished marble stone floor of the hall. The seventeen-year-old placed her feet securely underneath herself as she pushed off the ground with her feet, landing upright once again. Ashlyn used the Force to push Serin back a few metres before calling the lightsabers back into her hands. Serin slid back along the floor, came to a steady stop in a half crouch and was still for a few seconds as if waiting for the right moment to come along,  
"Obviously wasn't the wrong move after all," Ashlyn said to no one in particular.  
Serin shot up from his crouch and within seconds he was right in front of his opponent, striking down onto her left shoulder. Ashlyn turned her back on him and blocked the blow with a back block before aiming with her left lightsaber at Serin's hip with lightning speed. Serin, however, was just as fast as he blocked the strike, pushed off and made for a leg strike coming from both sides all in one foul sweep. Ashlyn managed to block them both before turning back around to face her opponent and kicking him in the gut causing the eighteen-year-old Padawan to lose his breath. Even though he lost his balance and breath Serin blocked one after another as Ashlyn rained strikes down over his head but then he saw an opportunity. Their lightsabers came into a grinding lock and Serin pushed up against the pressure which caused Ashlyn to lose her footing and fall back onto the floor. Two lightsabers skited across the floor away from their owner as Serin pointed his dark blue lightsaber blade at her, stopping inches away from Ashlyn's throat.  
"You win again," Ashlyn said as grins broke out on their faces and Serin deactivated his lightsabers, reattaching them to his belt before offering a hand to help Ashlyn back onto her feet.  
The younger Padawan gripped firmly as Serin pulled her up off the floor and then she called her lightsabers to her hands before clipping them back into their respective places on her belt.  
"You're getting better," Serin said as they walked through the large double doors and out into the corridor.  
"Yeah but you still beat me," Ashlyn pointed out in defeat.  
"Ash, don't be ridiculous, how long have I had my two lightsabers?" Serin asked.  
"That's got nothing to do with it," Ashlyn said trying to dismiss the question but then she saw the look that Serin was giving her.  
Ashlyn groaned as Serin began the same lecture that she had heard multiple times over the last few months.  
"Three years Ash while you have only been a dual wielder for-," Serin started but Ashlyn interrupted him.  
"Three years," Ashlyn said.  
"Well no technically you've only been doing it for two years," Serin corrected her for what felt like the millionth time that week.  
Ashlyn stopped and turned around to face her friend with a look of appreciation on her face, "Thanks Serin but that still doesn't change the fact that I am not as good at it as I'm supposed to be," she said.  
Serin watched as she turned back around and walked off through the crowded corridors of the Jedi Temple wondering why his friend could not see how much progress she has made in the short area of time that they had known each other.

* * *

"Masters, we cannot sit here and do nothing while there is a Sith Lord out there right now building an army," Ferus Olin demanded, "Let alone an army that is meant for the destruction of the Jedi Order."  
"Know this how do you?" Yoda asked accusingly.  
Ferus scoffed, "It doesn't take a fool to notice and recognise the signs Master Yoda," he said.  
"Enough Knight Ferus Olin, you forget where your place is," Master Windu growled at the young Knight.  
"I am not the only one Master," Ferus spat out the title as if it were filth.  
"Ferus, calm down," Obi-wan said, "Master Yoda, Anakin and I agree with Ferus as does Quinlan," he added in support.  
Master Yoda rose out of his chair and hobbled over to the window behind his seat as he stared solemnly out over the planet below. The room was silent as everyone watched and waited for Master Yoda to talk.  
"We do not doubt your wisdom Master Yoda and whatever decision you make we will follow through with it to the best of our capabilities," Anakin said as he rose from his chair and stood facing the Grand Master of the Jedi Order.  
Master Yoda groaned wearily, "The dark side clouds everything, difficult to see the future is," he said gravely.  
The old green Jedi turned around slowly to face the other occupants in the room and stood there for a few more moments.  
"Seek to overthrow me some of you are," Master Yoda said and then held up his hand to stop a torrent of denials.  
"Know you all I have, since Younglings you all were," Master Yoda reminded them, "Taught all of you I did and some your Masters."  
"Master Yoda," Anakin said as he approached him and knelt before the Grand Master, "I might have not trusted you for most of my time as part of the Order but nobody here is fit to take your place ever," he added without doubt or uncertainty.  
"True but one," Master Yoda said, "Not in this room she is but a great Grand Master of the Jedi Order she will be."  
"Who Master Yoda?" Master Windu demanded almost insulted that he would not be the one to step up once Master Yoda's time came.  
"Tell you I will not," Master Yoda said as he dismissed the meeting and called the presence of three of the room's occupants to remain.  
Master Windu, Fisto and Koon remained while everyone else left the Council chambers respectfully and without delay nor a desire to hang around.  
"What is it Master Yoda?" Master Windu asked once everyone was gone and the doors were closed shut.  
"Assignments I have for you all, go with the Smugglers and investigate the disappearances you will," Master Yoda said.  
"Of course Master," Master Fisto responded as the three Jedi Masters went to leave but before they walked out the Grand Master had a warning for them.  
"Steer clear of Dromund Kaas," Master Yoda warned, "Your deaths come they will if enter the system you do."  
Then Master Yoda was alone once again as he took his seat once again and he giggled to himself, "Too old I am becoming."  
"Since when has age ever meant something to you Master Yoda," a voice said as the old leader of the Jedi Order opened his eyes to see Ashlyn there in the doorway.  
Master Yoda chuckled as he beckoned for the Padawan to come closer which she did obey without delay and when she was only a few feet away Ashlyn knelt on the floor.  
"Grown much you have, remember the day you arrived I do," Master Yoda said, "Remember it do you?" he asked.  
Ashlyn frowned slightly and replied, "A little but not much of it."  
"No taller than you are now were you and humble of mind as well," the Grand Master stated.  
Ashlyn smiled gently, "I have always held you in the highest respect Master. What was it that you wanted to talk to me about?" she asked curiously.  
"Respect you your friends do, often you have led them astray just as much as you have led them to victory," Master Yoda said, "Listen to you now they will, listen to you they must," he added.  
"Master?" she asked.  
"A leader you have become and a leader you will be when ready you are to fulfil the responsibilities of leading the Jedi Order into a new age," the Grand Master revealed.  
"Me?" Ashlyn asked in shock, "The Grand Master of the Jedi Order?"  
The Padawan was silent from the shock as she tried to process the information given to her by the current Grand Master.  
"Master Yoda, I can't be the Grand Master. I'm not even a Knight yet not to mention there are eleven Jedi Masters and other Knights who are already ready for the role," Ashlyn stuttered in denial.  
"Seen it I have, happen it will and happen it must if the Jedi Order is to survive the upcoming onslaught," Master Yoda said confidently, "Believe in you I do, believe in yourself you must."

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _Terribly sorry it has taken me so long to post the first chapter of Book 5. My life has been overtaken by life._

 _Ashlyn Dubreas._


	3. Chapter 2-Construction

**Construction**

A large number of ships landed in the spaceport to find a welcoming committee already there and waiting for their impending arrival. Jaira approached the place where the loading ramp would connect with the durasteel floor full of anticipation and excitement. Riesha, Ventress, Barriss, Darth Xaeven and Lorka stood on either side of her as the ramp dropped to reveal the Geonosian leader walking down the ramp.  
"Are they finished?" Jaira asked, skipping all pleasantries and greetings as she wanted to get right to business.  
The Geonosian leader made the clicking sounds of his language as he stepped aside and presented the sight to the Empress. Rows upon rows of her specialized droids came down the ramp with three taking up an entire row. As they descended the ramp of the ship in front Jaira the other ship ramps dropped and more of the X5-S9s came spilling out.  
"Fantastic," Jaira said in amazement as they came to a stop in front of her and waited for orders to be given. The Empress approached the closest droid and touched it so as to familiarise herself with her creation of power and dominance.  
"This pleases you my lord?" a voice said from behind the droid and out came the other mastermind behind the marvellous machines, Dr Giles Thatch.  
"You read my mind Giles," Jaira said as she greeted him separately.  
"I can assure you they will serve you well," Giles reassured her, "I see your other plans have worked out in your favour spectacularly," he added as he gestured around at the hangar bay.  
"Still a little low on numbers but it won't be long now," Jaira said, "Come you should join us for some refreshments."

* * *

Meanwhile on Coruscant.  
"Hey! Where are David, Bramax and Ancor?" Jania asked when she noticed who was missing from their table in the mess hall.  
"Who knows? They said something about their Masters wanting them," Gav answered her question.  
"Hmmm, that's odd," Jania mumbled.  
"Now how is that odd?" Gav inquired curiously with a quirked eyebrow.  
"She means that they usually never miss meal times," Ashlyn replied to Gav's question for Jania.  
"Yep, they are always thinking about their stomachs aren't they?" Jania asked in amusement as the two girls shared a knowing look.  
"What's wrong with that?" Treb asked through a mouthful of food which got disapproving looks from the three girls sitting at the table.  
"What?" Treb demanded at the look.  
"Never mind," Jania scoffed as she shook her head in disgust.  
"Speak of the devils," Mayken said as three boys entered the mess hall and came straight over to their table.  
David, Bramax and Ancor sat down with their food covered plates and began to tuck in immediately, eating as if they had not ate a thing for a whole month.  
"Where have you guys been?" Jania asked curiously.  
The three Padawans placed three lightsabers on the table in front of them and the others had a closer look at the three hilts. Then it hit Jania in the face like a cold hand smacking her across the cheek.  
"You built your lightsabers?" Jania asked in excitement.  
Through mouthfuls of food, David answered her question, "Well Bramax and Ancor did, mine is just a training one."  
Ashlyn picked up the double-bladed training lightsaber to examine it before handing it back to its owner.  
"That's so awesome David!" Jania squealed, "Now it won't just be Daly and me at the Double-bladed lightsaber classes."  
Daly looked down the table at Jania with a frown, "What's wrong with that?" he asked.  
"We will have someone else to practice on," Jania said.  
Gav was looking at Jania in complete shock as it was rare for her to squeal at all let alone when she was excited. When Jania saw this look that her best friend was giving her she asked a simple, "What?"  
The other Padawan shook his head before going back to eating his food as did everyone else at the table except the occasional small talk between friends.

* * *

Later that day on Dromuund Kaas.  
The group sat around a large conference table with holo images in the middle of it depicting the plans for the attacks that Jaira had planned herself. Before they had begun the Empress had made the occupants all swear an oath of silence to her and gave them the warning of death if they tried to betray her plans to the Jedi or Republic.  
"I plan to take the army to Hoth first," Jaira revealed.  
The protests against the idea started up in which Jaira responded to by raising her hand to silence them.  
"Giles, you will need to fit each of those droids with protection from the cold elements of Hoth before I leave," the Sith Lord ordered.  
"Of course my lord," Giles responded.  
"My lord, are you sure attacking Hoth is a good idea?" Lorka asked unsurely.  
"Yes, and do you know why?" Jaira asked before answering the question herself, "There is a small Jedi Temple on Hoth and it is guarded by very few numbers of Jedi Knights. This is perfect target practice for the droids as well as the Initiates who will be joining me."  
Lorka rose from his seat and approached, "Then allow my men and I to join you, my lord," he offered his assistance.  
"The offer is very much appreciated Lorka but this is not a fight for the Death Watch," Jaira said as she rose from her high backed chair, "Besides I need to go with the Zygerrians on their rounds and complete new Initiates for the army," she added before walking out the door behind her. The others stayed in the room discussing other matters of none importance and the first of them to leave was Giles.  
"I better not keep the Empress waiting," Giles said as he farewelled the others and departed to his new lab to build a cold protection device for the droids to be fitted with.  
Upon entering his lab he began to grumble to himself about how he wished Jaira had informed him of these plans sooner so that he wouldn't have had to build so many of these devices in such a short space of time.  
"This would have been much easier to do if it was in the original designs for these blasted droids," Giles mumbled, "Now I have to fit a device to every one of the six thousand droids."

* * *

After two days travelling through Hyperspace, Lorka and five of his best arrived on Zygerria to command the group of slavers who would be accompanying him to many different planets around the galaxy. Accompanying them was Darth Xaeven so that any force sensitives could be picked out of the fray to become the leaders of the Sith Army. Jaira had requested that all born force sensitives will have higher ranks that the others would not be able to reach without extreme dedication. They boarded the two Zygerrian ships and proceeded to their first destination.  
"We will be going to Rishi," Darth Xaeven ordered as the ships left Zygerria's atmosphere and entered open space.  
Rishi was an outer rim planet that was mainly a gangster world but there were villages of farmers on the surface, most had to pay gangs money for protection. Some villages even had to pay protection money to multiple gangs and if they did not pay their farms and villages were attacked. Darth Xaeven was hoping that most of them would not fight back as it would make this mission a whole lot easier and quicker.  
"So how many villages have you managed to pinpoint a location for?" Darth Xaeven asked the leader of Death Watch.  
"I have only been able to find six villages," Lorka replied, "Are we to offer them refuge first to avoid any fighting?" he inquired.  
"Yes," the boy answered as he then began to order the landing on the planet's surface at the first village. Upon approaching the village they found it to be under attack by a gang and the Zygerrians, five Mandalorians and one Sith sprang into action immediately. Darth Xaeven ran through the ranks of the gang toward the centre of the village, cutting down the pirates right and left until he reached his destination.  
"Who are you?" an old man asked determinedly as the remaining gang members ran away from the village.  
"I am Darth Xaeven and I have come on behalf of Empress Jaira Solak of the Sith Empire," Darth Xaeven greeted and introduced himself to the old man before bowing in respect.  
"I am Karli the leader of this village and we would appreciate it if you leave now," Karli introduced himself as well.  
"We have come to offer you and your village protection and the chance to join the Empire," the First Son offered.  
"I will not be pushed around by a boy," Karli said glaring at him.  
"Then you leave me no choice," Darth Xaeven said as he activated his lightsaber, "You and your people will come us willingly or by force but I can guarantee you one thing if I have to use force most of you will become slaves," he added in warning as he pointed the blade at the man in front of him.  
Karli put his hands up in surrender when the red blade had been turned on him and sighed in defeat, "Can't you see my people have already suffered too much?" he asked.  
"Yes and if you join the Empire you will no longer need to worry about pirates and gangs," the Sith reassured him.  
Karli nodded and then turned around to face the other farmers, "Come, my people!" he called to them all before leading them all to the ships where they were processed onto the different ships. In this instant the people were split up between citizens and Sith Initiates, some mothers cried when their child was taken to the other ship but calmed down when they realized it was for the best.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _I hope you are enjoying it so far. Please review, I love hearing feedback._

 _Ashlyn Dubreas._


	4. Chapter 3-Jedi Representatives

**Jedi Representatives**

The next day on Coruscant.  
"P7!" Alazea called as she walked up the ramp of her ship with Jedi Master Mace Windu following close behind her. The little R2 unit rolled down the hallway and came to a stop in front of her, beeping and whirring as he went.  
"Master Windu, this is R2-P7. P7, this is Master Mace Windu. He will be joining us on our mission," Alazea introduced the Jedi Master and droid to each other.  
P7 beeped his greeting before rolling away back to the cockpit as he whirred something rudely about the Jedi Master.  
"Sorry about that, you will have to excuse his personality," Alazea apologised, "His owner before me was what you guys call a Sith I think so he doesn't much like anybody with the Force at first but he will be fine once he gets to know you," she explained.  
R2-P7 was white with parts of him being green which was the same colour as Alazea's eyes but he had originally been white and black. When the Smuggler bought him she decided that he needed a change in look and thought that green was the perfect colour for her little friend.  
Mace Windu was silent the entire time as Alazea showed him around the Corellian Corvette Class ship and once the tour was over the Jedi Master retired to the main hold while Alazea entered the cockpit.

* * *

After a few days of travel through Hyperspace.  
Eric and Master Plo Koon had just arrived on Rishi as the Jedi Master had sensed something odd happening on the planet that was mainly a pirate and gang-controlled world.  
"I'm not completely sure what you are going to find here Master Koon," Eric said, "As I said before this planet is controlled by pirates and gangs," he explained again.  
"Which is the perfect place as there are farming villages littered all over the planet surface as well is there not?" Plo inquired.  
"Yes but they don't trust people but if there has been villagers disappearing I know exactly where we will find that information," Eric said as he led Stones and the Jedi Master over to the Cantina.  
It was loud with music and yelling inside the large building as pirates, gangsters and smugglers surrounded the tables and centre bar, all of them drinking. The three new arrivals sat at a vacant table and were approached by a serving girl.  
"Can I get you guys anything?" she asked as she leant against the table with a datapad in her hand.  
"No thank you," Plo answered politely.  
"I'll just have a Ne'tra gal," Eric said and the twilek girl turned to Stones.  
"Same," the ex-clone said.  
The serving girl walked away back toward the centre bar to get their drinks and in the meantime Master Plo Koon was listening from his seat to all the different conversations to try and find out any new information. Jumping from one conversation to another it took a little while before he heard anything interesting.  
"I'm sorry boss but they are all gone, the village is empty," a voice said as he was berated by the gangster leader.  
"Impossible! How does an entire village get off world?" the leader demanded, "Never mind that. What about the other two villages?" she asked.  
"That's the thing boss the others are gone as well."  
Plo Koon withdrew himself and came back out of reverie to find Eric and Stones halfway out of the Cantina and they took the Wolf Star-Runner to investigate some of these farming villages. The first one was a shocking sight to behold and reminded the three visitors of the devastation that Dantooine had been left in.  
"Yep this is most definitely the same people," Eric said as he knelt down to look at footprints of the villagers scattering throughout the small collection of houses. Three houses had been burnt down, crops were destroyed and there were no bodies as well as no animals anywhere within eyesight.  
"They took all of them, even the women," Stones said horrified at the sight in front of him.  
Eric nodded, "They are getting better at this," he said in confirmation.  
"We should go look at some of the other villages," Master Koon said in a grave voice as he trod back to the ship. Eric and Stones followed not too far behind him as they continued their job. It did not take long to reach the next village but what they found caused even more confusion in the three of them.  
"Everything is fully intact," Eric said in complete amazement, "That doesn't make any sense," he added in confusion.  
"Maybe, maybe not," Plo said as he began to walk through the village.  
"What do you mean by that sir?" Stones inquired curiously.  
"Well think about it this way," the Jedi Master said as he sat down on a large rock in the middle of the circle of small huts. Once Eric and Stones were in front of him waiting to hear his theory he began.  
"I am a Sith and I need as many people as possible; I give the people of these villages a choice. Either join the Empire as a citizen or become a slave," Plo suggested, "Which would you choose?"  
Eric and Stones thought quietly about it for a few moments before they came to their answers very strongly.  
"I would tell them to forget about it if they know what's best for them," Eric answered.  
"Yes but as you told me before most of these people would have been terrorised by pirates and gangsters and there was no surety of living to see the next day. To add on top of that these people are lowly farmers with little to no combat training," Master Koon said, "Now think about your answer to those two options before. Which would you choose?" he asked the Smuggler again.  
"I would go willingly," Stones replied solemnly as he exchanged a look with Eric who nodded his head softly. Master Plo Koon, Eric and Stones trudged back through the village toward the ship and took off once they hopped on board.  
"Are there any other villages that you know about?" Plo inquired calmly.  
"There are plenty more but their locations are not common knowledge," Eric responded as they returned back to the Scoundrels Constellation.  
"I wonder how Inoma and Alazea are faring with Mace and Kit," Eric added softly under his breath solemnly.

* * *

 ** _A/N:_** _I think I will leave it off here for now. Tell me what you think._

Ashlyn Dubreas.


	5. Chapter 4-Falling Short

**Falling Short**

"Worthless….Weak….Failure," the string of words came through into Daly's mind from Jaira's end of the bond that the twins shared.  
"This is hopeless," Daly growled in frustration as he got up and stormed out of the room. Obi-wan Kenobi thought about getting up and following his Padawan until he felt Ashlyn's presence close by and so decided against it.  
Daly was sitting in a dark corner of the hallway when Ashlyn found him, his legs were drawn up to his chest and his face was hidden in his knees.  
"Daly?" Ashlyn asked softly as she approached him slowly and carefully. The other teen looked up in response to his name being said and that is when Ashlyn saw the tears streaking down his cheeks.  
"Why can't Master Yoda just cut the bond? I can't do this Ash," Daly said almost pleadingly, "Everything I try doesn't work and Jaira keeps just ripping it open more and more each time."  
Ashlyn knelt down in front of him and offered Daly her hand before helping him back up onto his feet, "Come on, I want to show you something."  
She grabbed Daly's hand in hers and proceeded to lead him somewhere, he however didn't pay any attention to his surroundings as he let his mind wonder knowing he was safe whenever he was with the girl that had caught his eye from the very moment they had met.  
"Here we are," Ashlyn's voice said, bringing Daly out of his reverie and he looked around to find himself in Ashlyn's bedroom with her standing beside him. They were standing in front of a wall that had been bare the last time Daly had been in the room but now it was covered with names and information about each of the people whom the names belonged.  
"Who are all these people?" Daly asked curiously and then he spotted an all too familiar name. The card read as follows:

 _ **Kyra Scorpio  
3BBG-10ABG  
Midiclorian Pneumonia**_

"It's a list of all the children that have been taken by your sister," Ashlyn answered, "And all who died from the epidemic," she added solemnly.  
Daly frowned slightly and asked her, "Why?"  
Ashlyn shrugged her shoulders as she stared at her friend's name, "Not really sure. I guess I did it so I can always remember them."  
The two Padawans turned to each other and they became entranced in each other's eyes, deep blue and hazel.  
"You need to be able to get through this," Ashlyn said softly, "If not for yourself then you need to do it for me and our future."  
Daly took Ashlyn into a strong and loving embrace while wondering how the girl in his arms always knew what to say and when to say it to him.  
"I love you," Daly whispered softly into her ear and Ashlyn leaned back slightly so she could look up into Daly's face. She lifted her hand up to cradle his jaw in her hand as she looked deep into his eyes before replying, "I know."  
Within minutes their lips came together in a gentle kiss, Daly's arms wrapped around her waist while Ashlyn's arms wrapped around his neck. It wasn't long before Daly's hair was tangled through Ashlyn's fingers. The two Padawans were so deep in their kiss that they failed to notice Anakin Skywalker standing in the doorway.  
"I certainly hope that Obi-wan and I won't have to put alarms on both of your bedroom doors now," Anakin said, announcing his presence and causing the two teens to jump apart, both of who turned to look at the amused Jedi Master.  
"Master," Ashlyn said respectfully and was about to explain when her mentor held his hand up to stop his Padawan in her tracks.  
"The two of you aren't in trouble, I'm just hoping you both slow it down a bit and understand how careful you need to be," Anakin warned gently but firmly at the same time.  
"Anakin, what's taking so long?" the voice of Obi-wan Kenobi reached them from the main living area of the private quarters. Then the older Jedi Master appeared next to his former Padawan in the doorway and became shocked at the sight in front of him.  
"What in the blazes have the two of you been doing?" Obi-wan asked incredulously as he took in his Padawan's messed up hair.  
"Obi-wan relax, nothing serious happened," Anakin calmly reassured his old friend.  
Obi-wan was about to retort when Ashlyn spoke up, "Master, it's okay. I promise we won't do anything rash," Ashlyn promised sincerely.  
"We need to go. Ash, you might as well help Daly with the blocking techniques," Obi-wan suggested before leaving with Anakin close behind him. Once the two Jedi Masters were out of earshot, their Padawans picked up where they had left off and it was only after a few moments that they broke apart for some much-needed oxygen. Ashlyn's hands dropped down to rest on Daly's chest as they rested their foreheads against each other.  
"We should probably do some of that practising Obi-wan told us to do," Ashlyn suggested.  
"Why?" Daly asked softly.  
"What do you mean?"  
"None of it is working and I was thinking of going to do some research in the Archives," Daly answered.  
"Research on what?" Ashlyn inquired worriedly.  
"Cutting bonds," Daly replied simply.  
Ashlyn was in complete shock, "No Daly, that's dangerous. You could end up doing far more damage than you intend to do," Ashlyn said, "Not to mention Master Yoda is the only one who can access that sort of information."  
"I'm not going to do it myself but I want to understand it more so that when I ask Master Yoda again I will know more about it," Daly said trying to reassure her.  
"Daly think about what you are saying," Ashlyn pleaded, "Master Yoda told you why he wouldn't cut the bond the first time you asked him. Remember he said that bonds between siblings are not like those between Master and Padawan which are the bonds he has only ever cut," she added.

* * *

Meanwhile in the Jedi Council Chambers. Master Yoda listened intently and silently to the reports that Mace Windu, Kit Fisto and Plo Koon were giving to the Council about the Sith Lord that had been leaving traces all throughout the Outer Rim and other systems that were not controlled by the Republic.  
"What course of action do you want us to take Master Yoda?" Master Windu asked.  
"Dangerous this path is, continue to assist those that are being left behind you will," Master Yoda said.  
"But that's just it Master there have been no survivors," Master Koon pointed out again.  
"In the past survivors, there have been," Master Yoda said more to himself than any of the other Masters as he tried to muse over this never development.  
"I believe Master Yoda that these new victims of this Sith Lord are being given a choice. Come quietly and you will live as a free citizen of the Empire or resist and become a slave, the only ones this rule excludes is those who have been deemed fit enough to be trained as a Sith," Master Windu said.  
"They are building an army," Master Skywalker said worriedly.  
"Impossible there hasn't been a Sith Army in the Galaxy since the fall of the last Sith Empire and then there was the Millennia of Peace," Master Mundi pointed out.  
"None of us want that to happen but sadly this is what we are faced with," Master Kenobi said calming the situation that was about to get heated.  
"What have you to report Master Skywalker?" Master Yoda asked as he turned to the youngest Council Member in the room.  
"If you don't mind Master I would prefer to discuss the topic with you in private," Master Skywalker replied, hoping that the Grand Master would agree.  
"Very well, dismissed you all are," Master Yoda said to everyone in the room and then walked over to the window and looked out over the Temple while he waited for the room to empty. He turned back around as Anakin came to stand in front of him and then the young Master knelt in front of the old Green Jedi Master.  
"Troubles you something does?" Yoda pointed out curiously.  
"Yes Ashlyn and Daly are becoming very close, too close for my liking," Anakin revealed.  
"Nothing you will do," Master Yoda responded firmly.  
"But Master they are only Padawans-," Anakin started but was interrupted by Yoda jabbing the end of his walking stick into the shin of the man in front of him.  
"Let the Force lead them we must," Master Yoda said, "Lead them astray it cannot."  
"Regardless they are too young to get into any mess. What say you if Ash is to get pregnant before the right time?" Anakin demanded, "What would you do then?"  
"Children yours and Master Kenobi's Padawans will have but a while off it is still," Master Yoda said confidently.  
"Master Yoda all due respect but just before I came to this meeting I found Ashlyn and Daly in Ash's room together kissing," Anakin explained.  
"Trust your Padawan, you do not?" Master Yoda asked.  
Anakin looked at the Grand Master incredulously, "No, I trust her completely Master."  
"Then trust her with this you must, a strong will your Padawan has and faced many trials that no other Padawan her age has dared to she has, not even you," Master Yoda said in finality.  
"Yes Master Yoda," Anakin said in defeat as he bowed his head and awaited the order of dismissal.  
"Trust in the Force we must in these critical and dangerous times," Master Yoda said, "For lead us to where we need to go it will, dismissed you are Master Skywalker."  
Anakin rose to his feet and after farewelling the old Jedi Master left to circular room in a slight annoyance that he had just been told to ignore the direction his Padawan was taking.

* * *

 _ **A/N:** Next chapter done, will be posting the next two up straight away._

 _Ashlyn Dubreas._


	6. Chapter 5-Sith Initiate Trials

**Sith Initiate Trials**

Two days later on the other other side of the Galaxy. Life as a Sith Initiate on Dromund Kaas was far from glamorous, it was downright dangerous and deadly. Every week all the Initiates had to prove themselves for them to continue their training and if you managed to catch the eyes of Jaira, Riesha or Ventress life was much easier. The trials for that week had arrived and all the Initiates were standing in rows, youngest at the front and oldest at the back.  
"Now is your chance once again to prove yourselves worthy of your training continuing," Jaira said, "Ventress and Riesha will be putting you all into pairs. Any who object will be eliminated immediately."  
Then Riesha and Ventress walked through the two age groups and paired their Initiates up. This week they were putting the stronger students against the weaker ones. Barriss almost couldn't bear to watch as every fibre in her being screamed at her for not stopping what she was about to witness. In the Jedi Order, opponents were picked fairly with weaknesses and strengths being taken into account to make sure nothing would go wrong. On top of that, Younglings in the Temple used training lightsabers whereas here all of the Initiates had fully operating standard lightsabers. The first pair was a ten-year-old boy named Kytan and a five-year-old boy named Maquro, the older of the two boys had already become a favourite. Kytan was tall and lean for his age with dark blue eyes and midnight black hair while Maquro was very small with mousy blonde hair and brown eyes.  
"Watch this boy Jaira, he is amazing," Riesha said to her cousin as she pointed to Kytan who was stalking toward Maquro.  
As suddenly as it started it was over, after three strikes from the older boy Maquro dropped his hilt and yelped in pain.  
"I've seen enough," Jaira said as she gave a gesture to Kytan to continue.  
The ten-year-old walked up to the smaller boy and Barriss couldn't bear to look as Kytan bought the red blade down on the whimpering boy at his feet. In a matter of seconds, Maquro's head was no longer attached to his shoulders and his body was dragged away by one of the Mandolorians from Death Watch. It went on like that for the entire day and at the end there was a large pile of bodies which was left there as a reminder to all the other Initiates of what failure will bring them.  
"Jaira are you sure this is the best way to do this?" Barriss asked the Empress.  
"This is the only way Barriss. I need the strongest out of them all and don't worry about low numbers as my Apprentice will be back soon with more Initiates," Jaira replied curtly.  
"Yes my lord," Barriss said as she bowed slightly before making her way back to the Medical Centre and to the Force Born children.  
This had been the first time that the Initiates had been fighting for their lives and it would happen again in another 2 months.  
"Riesha bring the winners to the Audience Hall please," Jaira requested and then she was alone as she walked back to the Citadel. It wasn't long, however, when her cousin arrived with the Initiates who had made it and they were all curious as to what was going to happen now. Upon reaching Jaira's throne they bowed low to the ground and then knelt down on their knees to await her words.  
"I was very impressed by all of you today," Jaira said, "So much that I have decided to give you all a day off from training tomorrow."  
The Initiates all became excited which was met with extreme disapproval from the Empress as she raised her hands to silence them.  
"You are not to use this day off for fun or goofing around as you will be given the chance to explore the planet a bit. I want all of you to find a place to meditate and learn something new that interests you. Whether that be in the Temple Ruins, the forest or within Kaas city itself the location does not matter to me," Jaira instructed, "Then you will each come to me the day after to tell me what you did and what you learnt."  
Jaira dismissed them and the Initiates left the hall still filled with excitement at the chance to explore the planet and have a break from their rigorous schedules.  
Riesha gave her younger cousin a peculiar look, "So what is the point of this assignment that you have given them?"  
"I need to wean out those who follow orders without question from those who will use their freedom to enjoy themselves rather than follow orders," Jaira answered, "The ones who follow orders without hesitation will be guaranteed higher positions in the army than those who don't. As long as they continue to improve on their training and other skills of course. I might even give a few of them higher ranks now," she explained in more depth for her reasons on setting the task at hand for the initiates.

* * *

That night, excitement and anticipation filled the barracks of group A4 as the young Initiates sat around talking about what they were going to do on their day off.  
"I'm thinking that I'll go to the lake," Patemer said thoughtfully.  
"We're not allowed to go swimming Patemer," Valaro warned her.  
"I know who said I was going to swim in the lake," she replied, "I walked by it the other day on the way to class and saw an interesting rock."  
"Why would the Empress give us such a stupid task. I would rather train than go somewhere and meditate," Balon complained.  
"Obviously she wants us to learn something and besides I highly doubt the Empress would ask us to do something for no reason," Kalei said disapprovingly.  
"What will you be doing Kalei?" Meko asked curiously.  
"I am going to see if I can find the Ruins of a temple I read about in the archives," Kalei answered, "Apparently there is an artefact in amongst the old buildings that has not been uncovered yet and I want to bring it back to the Empress."  
Acamar scoffed loudly at the idea, "How are you going to find an artefact that not even the Empress can find?" he mocked.  
"I don't see you telling anyone what you'll be doing with your free time Acamar," Kalei scowled at the younger boy.  
"That's because I'm going to be catching up on some much-needed sleep," Acamar retorted.  
The other Initiates laughed at him for his stupidity and laziness as he just death glared at them all for mocking him.  
"Well you never know maybe she does want us to do something simple like that," he said in his defence, "At least I won't be walking around blind or something."  
"How did you last this long Acamar?" Kytan asked incredulously through his laughter, "If you go to the Empress the day after tomorrow and tell her you slept the day away she will probably behead you right where you stand," he added.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _Hoping everyone is enjoying the series so far._

 _Ashlyn Dubreas._


	7. Chapter 6-Friction

**Friction**

Meanwhile on Coruscant.  
"We should be out there getting rid of these Sith," Treb complained as he had been doing for the past few weeks. It was bad enough that David, Bramax, Ancor and Serin shared this opinion except it seemed for once Serin didn't want to disobey orders.  
"It's not as if the Council is doing nothing I mean where do you think your Master has gone?" Serin growled in frustration.  
Treb began to mutter complaints to himself and only stopped when he saw the look Ashlyn was giving him which caused the teenager to stop his muttering. The group always became tense whenever this topic came up in discussion as most of the Padawans disagreed with Treb wanting to leave the Temple on their own. It was silent until they reached the Jedi Archives which was their main area for hanging out now as most of them spent their free time studying. As soon as they reached their destination Treb started it up again while Jania ground her teeth together in agitation as she tried to ignore him and focus on her studies.  
"Treb, you need to stop going on about this, if you want to complain to someone go talk to Master Yoda," Jania growled out a warning.  
"I have already tried that but he just gave me one of his speeches about duty and responsibilities nonsense," Treb retorted back.  
"Padawans quiet please," Master Nu requested as she walked past the group and heard how loud their conversation was.  
Treb was about to argue with the Jedi Master but when he opened his mouth Daly slapped a hand over his friend's mouth and said, "Sorry Master, it won't happen again."  
Master Nu walked away and Daly removed his hand from Treb's mouth as he death glared at his friend.  
"Mate, you know what happens when you argue with Master Nu," Daly growled in annoyance, "We will all get banned from the Archives for a week," he added, reminding the other teen of the consequences.  
"Well I still think we should go and investigate the trails your sister has been leaving all over the Galaxy ourselves," Treb whined.  
"Yes we understand that Treb but this complaining and whining all the time is really started to get on our nerves," Raven said as he backed Daly up, "If we go and disobey orders again it will be very likely that we will all be kicked out of the Jedi Order. Is that what you want?" he inquired.  
"Well if it means doing something other than sitting around doing nothing then I am definitely willing to take that risk," Treb said confidently, "Besides it will give us a chance to prove to the Council how capable we are of taking care of ourselves."  
Serin scoffed, "There are only a few of us who are decent pilots to pull that off and in case you hadn't noticed Treb you're not one of them," he reminded the other Padawan of the fault in his plan, "You wouldn't last one day without Ash, Daly, Raven, Gav, Stret or me."  
"I'm not that bad of a pilot," Treb retorted defensively.  
"Ahh Treb don't you remember how many times you failed in the pilot simulators," Gav pointed out.  
"Well if Master Tinn had told me how to fix the errors that were coming up I would have been fine," Treb whined.  
"Treb, they were exams that you were supposed to study for so that you could do the fixes yourself. Master Tinn wasn't supposed to tell you how to fix it," Gav said as he started to get frustrated with his friend's idiocy.  
Treb went to retort back when Ashlyn looked up and gave him a warning look which stopped him in his tracks yet again.  
"Guys you all need to stop talking about this cause it's not going to help in any way. Treb we are not leaving the Temple or Coruscant without Master Yoda's permission and we are going to focus on our courses," Ashlyn said, "None of us want to hear any more on the topic," she added in finality.  
When Ashlyn said these words everyone shrugged their shoulders and went straight back into their study, all except Treb who after a few moments got up from his chair and stalked out of the Archives in a huff.  
"I'll catch you guys later," Mayken said, "I've got some stuff to do," she added as she got up from her seat and left with her study bag slung over her shoulder.  
Mayken was partially lying as she was going to go meet up with Paulo who had asked her for some help with some of his study on topics that he was finding extremely difficult. It didn't take long to find him either as she came across him in the hallway obviously leaving a class. They went out into the gardens even though it was really cold outside but she didn't really want to take Paulo to the Archives where her friends were; besides she had been stuck inside the Temple for most of the day and the outdoors was a refreshing and welcome change.  
"So what was one of the things you needed help with?" Mayken asked as they sat down on a bench.  
"Well I still can't remember the Jedi Code very well and Master Kenobi told me I needed to have it memorised by next week," Paulo mentioned.  
"I don't know if there is anything you can do except repeat it over and over but doing it before bed every night and then every morning is a good way to learn it. At least that's what the others in my clan did if they arrived at the Temple later than the rest of us learnt it," Mayken suggested unsurely.  
"When will I be able to choose my advanced lightsaber combat style?" Paulo inquired curiously.  
"It really all depends I guess on when your Master thinks you're ready and your age and skill is included in the timing," she answered. Then she spotted Ashlyn and Daly walking around nearby when a thought came to her, "Ash! Daly!" she called out to them.  
The two older Padawans heard their names being called and turned around to see Mayken and Paulo sitting on one of the stone benches, Mayken was beckoning them over to them.  
"What's up, guys?" Daly asked as they got closer to the two younger friends.  
"Paulo wants to know when he will get to choose his lightsaber combat style," Mayken said, "I thought you would both have a better chance at answering it effectively," she added as she gestured to the hilts attached to the belts of the two Padawans.  
"Well as a general rule it doesn't happen until you become a Senior Padawan but in Ash's case-," Daly started to explain as Ashlyn took over in finishing the explanation.  
"I showed potential a lot earlier but I only just built my second hilt," Ashlyn explained.  
"When do you become a Senior Padawan?" Paulo inquired curiously.  
"Seventeen is the usual age but of course your Master can withhold it if you show signs of being incapable of taking the responsibility seriously," Raven answered as he came around the corner in the path, "The only time you get to choose the combat style earlier is if you decide on having a single bladed lightsaber like I have," he added.  
Then Gav, Stret, Jania and Serin joined them as they gathered around the group; some of them sat down on the other two benches while the others remained standing.  
"You don't really need to worry about all that stuff right now though just focus on getting through your studies to become a Padawan before you start worrying about it," Jania advised.  
Ashlyn turned to Serin and asked him quietly, "Where's Treb, Ancor, David and Bramax?"  
"Take a guess, they went to plan their escape from the Temple," Serin replied, "In one of the private meditation rooms," he added.  
Ashlyn groaned as she turned to follow Serin to where he had seen the four boys last; nobody seemed to notice their disappearance except for Daly whose arm had been wrapped around her waist.  
"I am sick of those four acting like children that need to be constantly supervised, I'm not their mother," Ashlyn said.  
"Master Yoda trusts you to keep them under control though and we can't exactly let them do anything stupid without thinking rationally about it," Serin put in.  
It did not take long to get to the room their four friends were hiding in and when Ashlyn pressed the button next to the door it opened without delay. Treb, Ancor, Bramax and David sat around on the cushions in a circle whispering hurriedly to each other. They had yet to notice their two visitors who were standing in the doorway; Ashlyn with her arms crossed across her chest.  
The seventeen-year-old coughed loudly to get the attention of the four wayward Padawans and they all jumped in reaction to the sound, "Please continue, I'm sure you have a foolproof plan already," she said in a very annoyed tone.  
"You're not the boss of us Ash," Treb growled.  
"Treb, do you know why Master Yoda put me in charge?" Ashlyn asked him and then answered the question before he could, "Because he trusts me to be able to keep everyone in the Temple and safe," she added.  
"That doesn't mean that you have to spy on us," Bramax retorted but was interrupted by the look Ashlyn was giving him.  
"You all have a choice to make now. Do as I ask or I will tell Master Yoda everything and then there will be no way any of you will be able to be alone together," Ashlyn threatened.  
It was silent for a few moments as the four rebellious Padawans thought about what they were going to do next and as time went on one by one they left the room. The last of them in the room was Treb who was as always being stubborn but he too eventually walked out and then headed straight to the private quarters he shared with his Master. Master Plo Koon was currently away following the trails and investigating the disappearances of people all over the Galaxy at that point in time which meant Treb had the entire quarters to himself. This did not help his mood at all as he had plenty of time to himself to dwell on everything that had happened.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _Please leave reviews, I love to hear feedback from my readers._

 _Ashlyn Dubreas._


	8. Chapter 7-Control

**Control**

The following day on Dromuund Kaas.  
All the Initiates were lined up in front of the Empress on their knees as they awaited her orders as she walked along each line. Every few students she pointed at them and they went to stand along the walls of the audience hall, waiting silently for further instructions. Once completed Jaira returned to her throne and began to explain what she had done in the last few minutes and all of the Initiates waited on bated breath.  
"All those who are standing around the room will join me on Hoth for a battle the Jedi Order will never forget," Jaira announced, "Survive the battle and you will become more powerful than everyone else here. The rest of you are dismissed!"  
The leftover Initiates remained where they stood with their backs against the walls, awaiting further instruction.  
"We leave tomorrow morning so I expect you all to be at the Spaceport at dawn or you will be left behind and won't see your prize," Jaira instructed them before dismissing them as well.  
As this group walked out of the hall the Death Watch mercenaries were waiting just outside the doors and tied a red band around each of the initiate's right arms. Most were curious as to what was going on; some thought it was so that if they were seen tomorrow after dawn still on the planet they would get killed or worse made a slave. While others believed it was part of the prize if they succeed in their task which was becoming leaders over the other Initiates. Either way little did they know that they were right on both ideas.  
Once she was alone in the audience hall, Jaira called for the Force born children to be bought to her so that she could move onto the next stage in the plan she had in store for them.  
"Who is this Barriss?" Jaira asked as the healer walked in with a four-year-old girl clutching her hand.  
"Her name is Zalriu, my lord," Barriss said, "She is four years old."  
"Come here child," Jaira said gently, beckoning with her hand for the young girl to stand with her, "Homeworld?" she asked.  
"Corellia," Zalriu answered, "And my name is Cara, not Zalriu," she added stubbornly.  
Jaira frowned slightly as she closed her eyes and entered the child's mind to complete the task that must be done for her plans to be successful. Jaira erased the young girl's memories of home, her parents, the Jedi and even her birth name. Once Jaira finished she opened her eyes to find a blank look on the young girl's face.  
"Off you go now Zalriu, it was a pleasure to meet you," Jaira said.  
Zalriu walked back to Barriss and took the offered hand before allowing the healer to lead her out of the room. Not long after leaving the room Barriss returned with a toddler in her arms who was cooing softly and happily to himself.  
"Name?" Jaira inquired.  
"Dirok," Barriss replied, "He is 1 year old and is from Crystophosis." She added deliberately as she handed the little boy to the Empress.  
"The younger ones are always easier," Jaira mentioned as she closed her eyes and followed the same process; the only difference was she did not have to erase as much information from the toddler's mind. After the deed was done Barriss took Dirok and walked back out before returning with another child. The day continued like that right into the afternoon and then once the last child had her mind wiped Jaira retired to her private quarters. It wouldn't be long now when she would have Jedi in chains on Zygerria which was now to be the fate for all Jedi in the Galaxy.

* * *

By noon the next day, all the Initiates had come out to find the paths covered in blood with no bodies in sight as they walked through the city to the training grounds. There were fewer numbers than the day before as most of them had gone with Jaira to attack the Jedi Temple on Hoth. Little did the Initiates know however that any of those who had not managed to reach the spaceport in time had been slaughtered by the Death Watch as most had been on the way back to their dorms. The blood they walked through that same morning to get their lessons was the blood their fellow Initiates.  
"We have new students for you both," Darth Xaeven revealed as he came to stand next to Riesha and Ventress which caught the attention of both women straight away as they turned around to find a large number of people.  
"Take the younger ones to Barriss and leave the rest here with us," Riesha ordered.  
"Very well," Darth Xaeven said as he departed with a quarter of the massive group and began the trek up to the city.

* * *

Jaira stood on the bridge as she watched the naval crew that Tarkin had put together worked to pilot a starship of this magnitude. They had been in Hyperspace for at least three days now which was a result of how large the group of massive ships was. There were at least five starships; each one filled with the selected Initiates and X5-S9 droids. The Empress knew however that she had all the time in the Galaxy to get to her intended destination where the Jedi Knights in the Temple were sitting ducks with no way of knowing what was coming.  
"My lord, we are coming out of Hyperspace," an Officer came running up to her, informing her of the update.  
"Good. Get the jammers ready, I don't want any of those fools to have the chance to call Coruscant for help," Jaira instructed and then he ran off to go relay her orders.  
Jaira was slightly disappointed by the numbers that did not show up at the spaceport in time but she needed the rest to understand the consequences for dawdling otherwise she would lose all control on her army. Then within the next few moments, the starships exited Hyperspace above Hoth.  
The Sith Empress at that point left the bridge and walked briskly through the ship to the hangar where the army was waiting for their orders.  
The starships with the droids landed while the ones that held mainly Initiates hovered above the ground which meant the students had to jump. If any were too afraid to jump then they were pushed, most survived this however and they ran towards the Temple.  
"Remember don't kill any of them!" Jaira yelled through the Force to all who were under her command.  
It did not take long for the Jedi Knights to react as the Sith Army approached even though the peacekeepers were taken by surprise at the attack they were able to recover quickly.  
"Hoth to Coruscant, is anyone there?" Master Calen Dor requested into the communication station desperately but he didn't seem to be getting through. He tried again and again before the realisation dawned on him. The attackers had jammed all transmissions and there would be no help coming from the Jedi Temple on Coruscant.  
"Master!"  
Calen turned around to see his Padawan running to him and the Jedi Master knew what he had to do.  
"Balor, get the children out now!" Calen yelled over the noise as the whole building reverberated.  
"But Master?" Balor asked almost pleadingly but he didn't have long to continue when the Jedi Master Force pushed the young teen through a door.  
Calen used the Force to lock the door and then cut through the locking device with his lightsaber before giving the order again.  
 _Get the children to Coruscant and tell Master Yoda what has happened here.  
_ Then Calen walked through the door to join the battle while trying to ignore his Padawan's cries for him. The Jedi Master was quickly overwhelmed by the numbers and the last thing he heard was Balor screaming.

* * *

After the battle had finished, Jaira walked up to the site flanked by her personal guards to find the young crying Padawan cradling his Master in his arms. She was tempted to kill him but then thought against it as she realised how useful the teenager would be to her army. The Sith Lord gestured for two Initiates to take the boy to the starship which wasn't an easy task as the Padawan struggled against them.  
"Do not harm him!" Jaira ordered angrily when one of the Initiates went to activate his lightsaber to make a final deadly blow. Then Jaira heard something from further inside the Temple and walked in to investigate. She was pleased with what she found in one of the back rooms. The small room was filled with at least thirty children, all no doubt were Younglings and would be perfect additions to her Empire.  
"Captain, send a shuttle down to my location," Jaira said into her comlink.  
"Of course my lord, what have you found?" a reply came, curiosity soaking the voice.  
"Never mind that, just get a shuttle down here immediately."  
There was a confirmation in response and within fifteen minutes a shuttle came through the massive hole in the roof of the building.  
"Come along children," Jaira said gently as she coaxed them all onto the shuttle. Then it took off back to the starship and Jaira exited the building to see the bodies being loaded onto shuttles. All of those Jedi who had been stunned by the droids were bound with anti-force restraints that stopped the flow of the Force to keep them under control. Those that were dead were left to turn the snow blood red with their blood. There was no doubt that the Jedi from Coruscant would come and investigate the happenings here because of no communication from the Temple in a few days or maybe even weeks.  
"Take me up to the Vitality," Jaira ordered a pilot of one of the shuttles as she entered the cockpit and took a seat.  
"Yes, my lord," he responded as he took off.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _It is an interesting fact that the Sith Army Initiates are essentially slaves to the Empire but they do not view themselves as slaves. Now there is a stark difference between the Sith Army and the Force Born. Jaira views the Sith Army members as all disposable and replaceable hence why she has no care for whether they live or die as long as they serve their purpose to her that is all she cares about. The Force Born, however, are her precious children and she takes a hell of a lot more care in their lives. Unfortunately, it is a warped type of love and ultimately they serve a purpose to serve her but when you consider how she was raised it is not really a surprise. The only people who truly cared about her were Daly and her mother and from her perspective they both abandoned her to a life of constant torment and to the mercy of her father, who used her for his own gials and purposes._

 _Ashlyn Dubreas._


	9. Chapter 8-Distraction

**Distraction**

Meanwhile on the other side of the Galaxy, Anakin Skywalker shot up straight in bed and clutched his head in pain as he heard the cries and saw the attack on the Jedi Temple located on the ice planet of Hoth. After the vision finished he leapt up from the bed and left his private quarters in search of Master Yoda so as to inform him of the event. It did not take the tall Jedi Master long to get to the Jedi Council Chambers which was where the little green Jedi spent most of his time these days.  
"Master Yoda," Anakin greeted as he walked through the doors and knelt down in front of the Grand Master of the Jedi Order.  
"Skywalker?" Master Yoda asked curiously, "Rest you should be getting."  
"I saw a vision Master, the Sith have now attacked the Jedi temple on Hoth," Anakin revealed which caused a look of extreme concern and sorrow to come over Master Yoda's face.  
"Feel it I did not," the little green Jedi sighed deeply.  
"Send me to investigate Master," Anakin proposed but Master Yoda raised his hand to stop him in his tracks.  
"No, have all the Padawans for Mechanics class tomorrow do you not?" Master Yoda inquired.  
"Yes I do but I don't see how that would stop you sending me to Hoth," Anakin said curiously.  
"To Tython you should take them, keep them out of trouble it will," Master Yoda said.  
"How long for?"  
"Keep them there as long as you can, without suspicious they become," the Grand Master instructed, "Keep them occupied, you must."  
"Didn't you put Ash in charge of keeping them out of trouble?" Anakin inquired.  
"Yes but troubles she is having with a few of them, easier to keep track of them on Tython it will be," Master Yoda said in conclusion.  
Anakin rose to his feet and full height before bowing and farewelling the little green Jedi Master. Then he departed and headed to the hangar to organise a ship to depart the next day as he came to the conclusion the earlier he got all the Padawans off-world the better. Once he had finished that task he went to contact all the other teachers the group of Padawans would have had lessons with to inform them of the trip he would be taking the students on. Most of the other Masters were very disgruntled by the late notice until Anakin informed them that Master Yoda had requested him to do the trip a few hours ago which made them stop complaining about the late notice.

* * *

Later that morning, Ashlyn woke up to her alarm and walked out of her room as she pulled her robe on to find her Master out in the main living part of the private quarters, sitting there ready and waiting for her.  
"Okay Master what's going on?" Ashlyn asked.  
"Gather your friends together and bring them to the North Hangar would you?" Anakin ordered more than asked as he got up and headed for the door, "Oh and be there by 0800 please?" he added before leaving his Padawan to process the order on her own.  
Ashlyn shook her head, "Never ceases to amaze me how crazy you can be Master," she muttered to herself as she grabbed a piece of fruit and ate it quickly. Before walking out the door into the hallway she straightened her tunic and went to the next door on the right which was where Master Kenobi's private quarters were. Ashlyn knocked and the door opened to reveal a very dishevelled Daly on the other side.  
"Come on in," Daly said as he walked back into the private quarters and Ashlyn watched casually as he got his breakfast.  
"So what do I owe the pleasure?" Daly inquired as he sat down across the small table from Ashlyn.  
"My Master said we all have to be at the North Hangar by 0800 and by everyone I mean everyone," Ashlyn said, "The group I mean."  
Daly laughed, "That is going to be a challenge," he said casually and amusedly to himself.  
"That's why I could use your help," Ashlyn said.  
Daly shrugged, "Sure, one thing for sure you will definitely need my help for some of the guys," he said, "I wonder where we are going?" he asked no one in particular.  
Then the two of them left to go find their friends which wasn't very hard at all as most of them were still asleep. Jania, Mayken, Gav and Stret were the only others who were awake but that didn't stop them all having fun with waking their friends up, in some cases quite rudely as well. Daly and Gav had an amusing time waking Raven up by pulling the other Padawan's matrass out from under him. Both laughed so hard they fell over when trying to escape as Raven jumped up to tackle them.  
"What in the name of Yavin's gas was that for?" Raven demanded and looked up at the sound of more laughter to see Ashlyn and Jania standing there in the doorway.  
"My master wants us all to go to the North Hangar," Ashlyn answered his question.  
"Oh and that calls for this? Instead of casually coming in here and waking me up in a civilised fashion to inform me of this but no you have to pull my mattress out from under me," Raven growled as he wacked Daly with one of his pillows.  
"Oh come on Raven doesn't this remind you of the good old days in our clan domitory," Daly piped out, his voice thick with amusement.  
Raven went to whack him again with the pillow when he found his hands suddenly empty and then he looked up to see it floating in mid-air.  
"How about we actually get to the hangar on time," Jania said as she dropped the pillow back on the bed.  
"Fine then," Raven grumbled as the others left his room to wait for him outside which wasn't very long at all. Next on the agenda was to split up and wake the others all up which turned out not to be necessary for Serin, whom Ashlyn and Gav found in the mess hall. The task took no more than an hour and when they entered the hangar to find Anakin Skywalker there waiting for them to arrive.  
"Right on time Padawans. Master Yoda has asked me to take you all on a trip to Tython for the Mechanics course you have all taken up. So go pack your things now as we leave in half an hour," Anakin instructed before dismissing them.  
"You dragged me out of bed to come here to tell me to go back to my room to pack," Treb complained openly.  
"Hey at least you didn't have your bed pulled out from underneath you," Raven shot back in annoyance.  
"All of you have nothing to complain about I got woken up by a jug of ice cold water," David said sorely.  
"Hey at least it was fun," Ashlyn said as she laughed heartily and received grumbled complaints in response. The group split up into smaller groups and headed off to get their stuff ready for the trip to Tython, most of the Padawans were excited to see the Homeworld of the Jedi Order for the first time. Not to mention their other courses were being put on hold while they went off-world even if it was for one of their courses and they would no doubt be kept busy for the entire time.  
"I can't wait to visit the Ruins of Kaleth, I learnt about it in the history course last year," Stret said full of excitement.  
"I don't think we will be leaving the main area Stret. Don't you remember the discussion that the Council was having last week about it being dangerous outside of the main compound," Gav reminded him.  
Stret's excitement dropped significantly as the realization dawned on him, "Oh yeah I forgot about that," he said in disappointment.  
"Don't worry Stret in a few years you will be able to go wherever you want on Tython," Ashlyn said comfortingly.  
"Yeah but by that time other Jedi Masters will have already walked all over it and I wanted to be the first," Stret said dejectedly.  
Ashlyn thought about what he said for a few moments and then made a mental note to mention this to her Master as well as Master Yoda. After all anything is possible and no one would question Master Yoda's order not to investigate the Ruins of Kaleth.  
"I wouldn't be worried about it Stret your chance will come," Jania reassured him before entering the private quarters that she shared with Master Adi Gallia.  
It didn't take the Padawans very long to get back to the hangar as most of them were really eager and excited to get underway on their journey. Upon arrival they found a familiar face standing with Master Skywalker, Alazea Stargazer. Stret started looking around for his Master who was nowhere in sight which made him feel even more disappointed.  
"Don't worry Stret, he left again on another ship as soon as I arrived. I'll be escorting you all to Tython I believe, I thought it was all rumour but obviously from what Master Skywalker has told me it is real," Alazea said.  
"Yes but I will have to wipe the coordinates from your Hyperspace navi-gation computer," Anakin said as he gestured for the group to follow him and Alazea up the ramp of the 'White Star', which was the name of Alazea's ship. Upon entering the cargo hold an R2 droid came in and started making whirring and whistling noises, unlike R2-D2 however this droid was white with green markings.  
"Everyone, this is R2-P7," Alazea introduced them to the droid, "He is my co-pilot basically."  
As Alazea was about to continue explaining about the droid, the little astromech rolled over to Mayken and started what looked like snuggling into her, whistling with excitement while he did so.  
"P7 used to take care of you as well as the ship if I had to go onto a planet surface to do jobs before I took you to the Jedi Temple," Alazea explained in amusement.  
Mayken put her hand on top of the droid and patted him awkwardly, "Hi P7," she greeted which got even more excited whistles from the droid.  
"Okay, we better get going, come on P7," Alazea called as she walked down the corridor in front of them and the group followed her. As they walked down the length of the ship, the Smuggler pointed out each of the rooms on the way and upon reaching the passenger hold they all filed into the room one by one. P7 went to enter the room right behind Mayken when Alazea called out to him.  
"P7, you are not going in there I need you in the cockpit," Alazea called back to him from the entrance into the cockpit. The droid began making amusedly rude sounding whistles and whirring at her as he pushed past Stret to catch up with Mayken. The teenagers all laughed at the astromech droid's antics as Alazea came in to literally drag P7 out of the room.  
"Come-on you big-lump of cold-metal," Alazea groaned as the green and white droid put his breaks on and the Smuggler suddenly wished she didn't take as good care of him as she did. Mayken put her bag down to help her mother when P7 extended one of his arms and clamped it onto Mayken's robe. Then he took off his breaks and started rolling out of the room with Mayken staggering behind him.  
"Well, I guess Mayken will be in the cockpit with us then," Alazea said as she left the other teens in the room, most of whom were laughing so hard that they were clutching their sides.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _Am terribly sorry about taking so long to update the story. I have had one crazy week with another crazy week to follow. I will try and get a few more chapters up tonight but am very tired so I'll see how I go._

 _Ashlyn Dubreas._


	10. Chapter 9-Tython

**Tython**

The next day, the Jedi Padawans were all gathered at the windows on either side of the ship starring out at the planet below as they came out of Hyperspace. Tython was covered in green with a few areas that were blue but Ashlyn was sure there was more water than what she could see from space. Landing clearance was a painstaking wait as Anakin Skywalker communicated with those on the planet surface via the holo-terminal that was situated in the passenger hold of the 'White Star'.  
"Why are they taking so long to clear us?" David asked impatiently.  
"They are probably checking with Master Yoda as well as using their scanners to scan the ship for anything suspicious," Anakin explained, "The Jedi Order has to be extra vigilant about the location of Tython otherwise our Sith friend might try and come here."  
"I can guarantee you Master Skywalker if Jaira knows about Tython and its location my father was the only one she could have gotten the information from and if that was the case he would have made Tython uninhabitable a long time ago," Daly said, "So the likelihood of my sister knowing about this place is slim."  
"Yes, but if Jaira is on Dromund Kaas it is very possible she has found references to the planet. During the Old Republic, the Sith Empire attacked Tython multiple times," Anakin revealed nervously.  
"Why are the Council wanting to return to Tython?" Bramax inquired in curiosity.  
"Coruscant is too exposed to the rest of the Galaxy I am sure you have all learnt about the sacking of Coruscant just before the war of the Old Republic," Anakin bought the event up, "The Jedi Temple on Coruscant was destroyed and many of the Order were slaughtered that day. The Council wants to try and avoid this from happening again," he added with more detail.  
"So we will be leaving Coruscant and the Temple unguarded?" Treb accused.  
"No Padawan, there will be Jedi there but only Knights and Masters. All the Younglings and the large majority of the Padawans will be bought here which is where they will finish their training," Anakin corrected him, "At least until the threat has been eliminated."  
That was when the landing clearance came through and the Jedi Master entered the cockpit again and guided Alazea in her landing while the teenagers went back to ogling out the windows at the Homeworld of the Jedi Order. When the ship finally landed on the planet surface the Padawans rushed through the ship to where the loading ramp was located, waiting with bated breath for the ramp to drop down so that they could explore the planet that they had only heard about since they were Younglings.  
"Hold on a minute all of you," Anakin said calling their attention to him, "Don't leave the perimeter and don't touch anything," he stated clearly and was not ready for the overflow of excitement when the loading ramp finally began to lower. All twelve Padawans didn't even wait for it to hit the ground before they were sprinting and jumping out of the ship which caused Anakin to groan slightly as he watched his class scatter in all different directions.  
"Looks like you need some help," Alazea said as she came to stand just behind him, putting her hands on her hips. R2-P7 went flying out of the ship, then rolled around for a few seconds until he spotted Mayken and then rolled away towards her, whistling and whirring all the way and it almost sounded like he was berating her.  
"No I should be fine, just have to give them all a little while to calm down. Besides they could use the day off anyway," Anakin admitted before leaving the Smuggler in her ship and went to go speak to the Jedi Master in charge of the project of rebuilding Tython. On the way to his destination, he walked past his Padawan who was looking up into a tall tree and somehow he knew what she was going to do before she even did it.  
Ashlyn jumped up into the air, reaching up with her hands as she caught the thick branch in her grasp and then used the trunk as a wall to climb up. She sat there for a little while just thinking about random things that came to her mind and looked down at the ground when she heard something. Daly was there below her looking up curiously as he silently wondered what she was doing up in a tree.  
"By any chance what are you doing?" Daly inquired curiously.  
"Why don't you come up here and find out for yourself," Ashlyn challenged him as she stood up on the thick branch and managed to hoist herself up onto the branch above her.  
Daly smirked as he followed her almost clumsily up the tree as he had never climbed a tree before and Ashlyn made it look easier than it actually was. When he heard her laughter he became more determined and when he did catch up to Ashlyn she was sitting in a crook of a branch and the tree trunk leaning back against the main part of the tree.  
"Are you wanting to spend your entire time here in the Medical Bay?" Daly asked with a quirked eyebrow.  
"I used to climb trees all the time on Naboo and I remember how disappointed I was when I arrived at the Temple and got into trouble for climbing one of the trees in the gardens in my first week," Ashlyn said and then she let out a heavy sigh.  
"So you are planning on spending your entire time in the Medical Bay," Daly teased conclusively.  
Ashlyn frowned slightly at the joke, "If anyone is going to fall out of this tree it will be you," she said in her thick Nabooian accent.  
Daly chuckled, "Yeah right."  
Then he saw the look in Ashlyn's eyes and he was about to apologise when all of a sudden his foot slipped out from underneath him and he dropped to the next branch.  
"What was that for?" Daly demanded accusingly.  
"I didn't do anything you have terrible balance and posture for tree climbing," Ashlyn said as she jumped down from her branch and onto his. Her landing was so precise and light that it seemed as if she had grown up living in the trees which caused Daly's jaw to drop slightly. Ashlyn giggled before jumping down from the branch and landing in a crouch on solid ground before standing up straight, turning around to watch Daly descend from the treetops.  
"Show off," Daly groaned.  
"I heard that," came Ashlyn's reply, "Come on Daly it's not that hard, think of it like lightsaber combat."  
Daly got into a crouch and then prepared himself to jump down, when he eventually did he landed in a crouch but at the last second he lost his footing. Ashlyn knelt down next to him and helped him back onto his feet.  
"Wow you really need to have a lesson in landings," Ashlyn said astonished at how poorly the other Padawan had done.  
"Oh knock it off," Daly growled.  
"It's funny because I was about to say something along the line of Jedi always land on their feet but I guess you're the one exception to that-," Ashlyn wasn't able to finish as she suddenly had to dodge a pounce from Daly. She started to sprint with Daly close on her heel but he luckily enough wasn't fast enough as Ashlyn weaved through the crowds of Jedi Knights. When Daly emerged from the crowded area of the camp he could not see any sign of Ashlyn anywhere. Deciding he would pay her back later he walked away to go do something interesting and little did he know that if he wanted to find the other teenager all he would have had to do was look up and he would have found her easily.  
"People seldom look up," Ashlyn chuckled to herself amusedly as she remembered her Master telling her that very statement one day in the early days of being his Padawan. Then she casually dropped down to the ground and went to find her Master. As being with the Hero with No Fear was probably the safest place for her to be with Daly hunting her for revenge on her little joke.

* * *

The next day, the Padawans arrived at the bunch of tables covered in what looked like ship engines and it wasn't long before one of them identified what they were.  
"Hyperdrives," Stret said in awe.  
"Wait where did all of these come from and how on earth did they get damaged?" David inquired incredulously.  
"These, Padawans, are Hyperdrives that were left here after the last colonisation of Tython which was over a century ago," Anakin revealed excitedly as if he had gotten a new toy. The group of students gave each other curious looks as to why they were working with machines that more than likely no longer worked and that were way behind in technology.  
"And we are going to do what with them exactly?" Treb asked unsure of whether he really wanted to know the answer.  
"I will be teaching you all how to fix and upgrade them," Anakin replied which caused him to receive looks from the students that basically said have you lost your mind.  
"Great my master has finally lost it," Ashlyn groaned.  
Anakin frowned disapprovingly, "Beside the fact that they are old and a century behind in technology they are still in fairly good working order and even the oldest of machinery can be upgraded quite easily if you know what you are doing as well as if you have the correct parts," Anakin said, "How old do you all think the Millennium Falcon is?" he asked.  
The Padawans looked at each other, most of them shrugging their shoulders and then the Jedi Master revealed the answer to his own question.  
"The Millennium Falcon is much older than these Hyperdrives, I can assure you all of that. It is almost two hundred years old," Anakin pointed out which caused the eyes of most of the Padawans to bulge out of their heads in shock.  
"And it still works?" Gav inquired in amazement.  
"Yep but only because it was well taken care of and is consistently being upgraded," Anakin said, "By playing around with these Hyperdrives you will learn a general idea of how one works and is put together. You are better off learning on these before moving onto up to date Hyperdrives."  
Then the students got to work as they each stood behind one of the tables and then they began to pull the pieces machinery apart and put new pieces in while learning the names of all the parts as they went. Anakin walked around them going from one Padawan to the next. Stret was the most interested in the task as his project had to do with Hyperdrive systems and within the first hour of the class, he could name all the parts and explain what it did. When the Jedi Master reached Daly's table he found a mess of oil all over the table and realised what the Padawan had done.  
"Getting distracted will not help you Daly," Anakin advised, "I suggest you clean this up before you continue."  
Daly then opened up the flux ignitor, this caused sparks to fly into the air to land on the sleeve of his robe which was drenched in oil. It caught fire and Daly ran to the river and jumped in to get the fire out and when he came to the surface he found most of the others laughing at him. Ashlyn came over to the edge and held her hand out for him to grab.  
"Well you certainly know how to be hot," Ashlyn joked as she laughed softly.  
Daly grasped her outstretched hand and grinned devilishly. Before she knew what was happening Ashlyn was in the water with him.  
"Daly!" she screamed in shock as she came up to the surface of the cold water. The other teenager just laughed as they began to splash water at each other. Then all the others decided to join in on the fun and a massive water fight broke out amongst the twelve Jedi Padawans.  
Anakin Skywalker walked closer to the edge and tried to order them all out of the water but quickly gave up as none of them were paying an ounce of attention to him. Then he thought about what his Padawan had said everytime she had done something that went against orders.  
"You would have done the same thing too Master," her words rang in his mind like an echo and so he decided to leave them be just this once. Life at the Temple, after all, was very restricting and almost suffocating, as fun was considered being against the rules. The Jedi Master began to wander away from the river reminiscing on his Padawan years and how rebellious he was even after becoming a Jedi Knight.  
"I say Skywalker where are the Padawans, isn't it time for their lesson?" a voice asked which dragged the man out of his musings.  
"Oh … ahh … they are taking a break," Anakin responded as he came face to face with the questioner who turned out to be Master Rahm Kota.  
"Skywalker they came here to learn, not to flounce around and relax," the older man scolded, "What are they doing?"  
Anakin Skywalker did not have to answer the question as the sound of the group of students playing in the river floated over to the two Jedi Masters. Anakin Skywalker winced at the look Master Kota was giving him before he started to stride firmly towards the noise with the Council Member hot on his heels.  
"Master Kota, please let me deal with it," Anakin said trying to divert the older man.  
"Why Master Yoda ever put you on the Council is beyond me from my point of view. You always have been and always will be reckless and undisciplined," Rahm Kota commented which made Anakin freeze from shock as he had always seen the older man as one of the better Jedi Masters in the Temple.  
"Now wait just a moment," Anakin said which caused Master Rahm Kota to turn around to face him, "Leave the Padawans to me, they are my responsibility."  
Then Anakin walked past the older man swiftly and quickly before he could do anything to stop him. When he approached the river's edge he called out, "Padawans!" None of them responded however in which he responded to by holding his hands out in front of them, closed his eyes and moved his hands up with palms raised to the sky. The Padawans were on solid dry ground in matter of seconds as they looked around curiously, wondering what had happened for a few moments. Then they spotted Master Skywalker and the look he was giving them which resulted in complete silence.  
"Now I want you to all go dry off and be back here in five minutes," Anakin ordered, "Go."  
The twelve students rushed away to their sleeping quarters to go get dry and Anakin turned around to see the look of astonishment on Master Kota's face. As Anakin passed him he simply stated, "That is why Master Yoda chose to put me on the Council."  
The older Jedi Master had heard stories about the younger man in front of him but had never seen his abilities in action.


	11. Chapter 10-Master and Padawan Reunited

**Master and Padawan Reunited**

Meanwhile on Dromuund Kaas.  
The leaders of the new growing Sith Empire sat around the table in their high backed chairs, the only chair that was different was the one that the Empress sat in. Her back straight and looking down at those around the table in front of her.  
"It is time we put the next stage of the plans in place," Jaira said confidently.  
"My lord, no offence to you but we still do not have the right equipment and there are still many more prisoners to sort through from the raid on Hoth," Lorka pointed out.  
"That does not matter to me, if they are not ready then they will be killed. Only the strong will survive," Jaira said, "And those are the ones I want."  
After that statement, there were no more questioning on their parts mostly because if one questioned Jaira too much and pushed the barriers where they should not be pushed an execution would become a guarantee. The planning and discussions went on for hours while outside Darth Xaeven was sorting through the prisoners of Jedi Knights, Padawans and Younglings alike. Most of the Knights wound up boarding the ship behind him which would take them to the new slave training camp the Zygerrians had built especially for the purpose of turning Jedi into slaves. The Padawans and Younglings mostly stayed and were put into their dorm groups where the Force Born children stayed. Jaira was very specific that she did not want them socialising with those who went through the Night Sisters dark magic to become Force sensitive. Some of the older Padawans, however, were too old to go through the memory wiping process so they had to go with the Knights where they would spend the rest of their lives in slavery. This selection process had been going on for weeks as the numbers were so many and there always seemed to be more of them the next day.

* * *

After three days on Tython and one day in Hyperspace, the Padawans returned to the Temple as Eric and Inoma arrived as well within minutes of each other. Completely ignoring their Masters who were waiting by the hangar doors the group of teenagers went straight over to the two Smugglers to catch up.  
"So did you find them?" Treb asked eagerly, hungry for news on the site.  
"Nice try Treb but we have been told to keep it to ourselves," Eric said amused at the young teenager's persistence to get any sort of information he could get.  
"Is it that bad?" Daly inquired almost scared of the response. Eric nodded his head slightly and sighed heavily.  
Then the group followed the Council Members to the Chambers and entered with permission from Master Yoda which shocked a few of the Masters but no one questioned the Grand Master's decision. The Padawans took their respective places behind their Masters, all of course except Mayken and Serin, whose teachers were not on the Council so they stood in the middle of the circle. Eric took out a holoprojector device and plugged it into the terminal that came up out of the floor in the middle of the room. The entire room went silent as they saw the image in front of them which was of the Jedi Temple on Hoth. The building was in ruin and there were bodies strewn all over the ground around it and from the looks of the image inside the building as well.  
"This is how we found the Temple on Hoth," Eric revealed Ashlyn's suspicions as to which planet this image came from. The room was silent from the shock from all the occupants in the room as everyone tried to process the image.  
"The bodies were not just Jedi but there were also men of all ages wearing black robes and armour," Master Koon added the information to the scene.  
"How many are dead?" Obi-wan inquired, "And how many are missing?" he added, his voice filled with pain and sorrow.  
"There was a total of thirty-seven dead, the other sixty-eight we don't know of their fate," Eric answered.  
"I believe that they too were taken prisoner as well," Master Koon added.  
"Have we been hit anywhere else?" Master Windu inquired.  
"Not as far as I'm aware," Anakin replied confidently.  
"Skywalker?" Master Windu asked curiously.  
"I saw this happen in a vision and I informed Master Yoda," Anakin revealed.  
"How did the rest of us not feel this?" Master Mundi asked in a panic.  
Ashlyn zoned out as her brain tried to process what was going on and then it clicked and she knew why her Master had taken them to Tython. She looked around at the occupants of the room and then stopped on Treb's face which had an expression of pure fury on it.  
"We should evacuate the other Temples and tell them all to come back to Coruscant," one voice suggested.  
"We don't have the supplies to cater for that many people," another voice argued back.  
"It's better than losing anymore Jedi to this Sith Empire that steadily growing larger each day."  
"Where would we put them though?" Master Luminara asked.  
Then Ashlyn felt an idea enter her mind, from where it came from, she did not know but she was sure it would work and the Council would like the idea. The Padawan walked into the middle of the room and the Jedi Masters stopped their arguing to watch her carefully.  
"Master Yoda, if I may?" Ashlyn asked permission to speak and the little green Jedi nodded softly in encouragement for her to continue.  
"I know where we should send the others from the off-world Temples to," Ashlyn said, "Naboo is my Homeworld and I have connections with people who may be able to help," she added.  
The room was absolutely silent and she waited a few moments before continuing in her explanation to make sure they were listening.  
"All of us have connections to planets from all corners of the Galaxy," Ashlyn pointed out, "We have an entire fleet of Starships at our disposal that we can simply park in space above different planets."  
"Ash is right," Anakin said, "This could very well work."  
Master Yoda was silent as everyone turned to him for his view on the suggestion that the Padawan had proposed and after a few moments he nodded in approval.

* * *

After an hour of discussions and organisations, the Council was dismissed as Master Yoda led Ashlyn into another room and then once inside took a seat on one of the cushions. The teenager took a seat on the cushion that belonged to her Master instinctively and waited for the Grand Master to talk.  
"A great Grand Master of the Jedi Order you will become young one," Master Yoda praised as he chuckled softly.  
"I'm still not so sure about that Master," Ashlyn admitted, "I mean Master Skywalker is the Chosen One of a prophecy, would he not be more suitable for the role of Jedi Grand Master?"  
"Your Master's destiny, already fulfilled it has been," Master Yoda pointed out simply, "Think me a fool, do you?" he asked.  
"No, absolutely not," Ashlyn replied hurriedly almost horrified at the proposition, "I cannot see myself in your role Master, that's all."  
"Seen your future you have though," Master Yoda prompted.  
"Yes but only my future with Daly and our children," Ashlyn replied.  
"Look deeper into that vision and see more you will," Master Yoda said and then he dismissed the Padawan which meant he was alone in the room. It was then that the young teenager decided to try and do as Master Yoda had suggested, to dig deeper into that vision and she soon found herself out in the gardens under the Tree of Prosperity.  
"I need to do this if I am to understand Master Yoda's perception of my future," Ashlyn said to herself as she sat down under the tree unbeknownst as to what was going on inside the walls of the building behind her. She closed her eyes and began to calm and clear her mind before reaching out to the Force in search of answers. After a while of searching, she opened her eyes to find the sun setting and realised she had been sitting there for more than a few hours. Disappointment filled her chest as she had not seen anything more to do with the vision of her future with Daly.  
"Maybe the Force is trying to tell me that it will never happen," Ashlyn commented.  
"Or maybe it is trying to tell you that you're not ready to know," a voice said from behind her and she turned to find Master Skywalker standing there.  
"Just like I'm not ready to know what these engravings mean," Ashlyn pointed out in even more disappointment as she touched her second lightsaber hilt lightly.  
"Ash, these sorts of things take time and a lot of persistence I might add," Anakin said.  
"But Master Yoda told me what he saw, so surely that means I'm ready for it," she said stubbornly.  
"Not necessarily, here is a question for you. Do you see yourself becoming what Master Yoda is saying he sees you becoming?" the Jedi Master inquired.  
"No I don't," Ashlyn replied and her Master snapped his fingers.  
"Exactly, the Force won't show you until you're willing to see it as well as believing that it will happen," Anakin explained.  
"Why does the Force have to be so complicated?" Ashlyn demanded impatiently.  
Anakin placed a hand on his Padawan's shoulder, "In time you will understand and you will see it."

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _That is me done for the night. I will have the next few chapters up next weekend. Please Review, I love hearing from my readers._

 _Ashlyn Dubreas._


	12. Chapter 11-Devastation and Ruin

**Devastation and Ruin**

It was dark outside as the Younglings in the Jedi Enclave on Ord Mantell were being put to bed and the Padawans stayed up studying for their exams. The Jedi Knights and Masters were doing their own thing too, some were meditating while others were walking through the halls talking amongst themselves. Ord Mantell had not seen war since the days of the Old Republic, it was now a peaceful and still well guarded planet. The sky was clear and the night was peaceful as Jaira looked down onto the capital of the planet below, the occupants unaware of what was about to unfold in their streets and the halls of the Jedi Enclave. The Jedi presence here was much larger than that of Hoth but not as large as the Sith Lord's next target.  
"Ready the army, I want every Jedi and Youngling out of here by sunrise," Jaira ordered as the Admiral and Captains then started to bark out more orders to the crew of the Starship.  
"My lord, are you sure that the army is ready for this?" Admiral Tarkin inquired curiously.  
"Do not question me Tarkin, remember your place in this," Jaira reminded him harshly as she watched the ships land in the streets. Sith and droids spilled out of the shuttles and made a beeline straight for the Jedi Enclave, the alarms did not sound until it was too late. The Enclave was surrounded and overrun as Jedi Knights, Masters and Padawans spilled out and began to defend their base. Once the crowd had been thinned Jaira headed for the hangar bay and boarded a shuttle which landed right in front of the doors to the large granite building. She entered with two droids and two Sith Initiates flanking her. They reached her designated destination fairly quickly, along the way more Jedi were coming out of the shadows and tried to fight them without success.  
"Now where are the Younglings?" Jaira asked nobody in particular. Then she heard a slight noise from the room in front of her behind two oak doors which she opened with ease. There in the room were around twenty-eight children of all ages with no Knights or Masters in sight. However, as the Empress and her guards came closer to the group four Senior Padawans came out of the shadows, activating their lightsabers as they breached the gap between the intruders and themselves.  
"Leave now Sith!" the eldest of the four ordered her confidently as he held one lightsaber in each hand.  
Jaira looked at each of the Initiates standing slightly behind her and then looked back at the Jedi Padawans before she gave the final order, "Take them."  
The two Initiates activated their red-bladed lightsabers and closed the gap between them and the Padawans within seconds. Jaira knew it would only be a matter of seconds before the Jedi students were all on the floor as she commanded the droids to stun them. In hardly any time all four Padawans were unconscious after being stunned by the droids and Jaira approached them.  
"You are all yet to be useful to me," Jaira said, "Take them up to the fleet," she added directly at the Initiates who followed the order immediately. Then Jaira proceeded to approach the group of Younglings and then ordered them to come with her, the children were scared but Jaira found a fearful child will do whatever they are told if it means survival. With the two droids leading the way out of the Temple and Jaira flanking the large group she wound up carrying a toddler as he could not walk yet and the children were all too young to carry her. The Sith Lord boarded the shuttle with the children and the pilot took off and it wasn't long until they were on board the Starship with the other shuttles not far behind the first one. The children were taken to a passenger hold so they would not witness the older Jedi being bound and restrained. Upon awakening a few of the Masters and Knights fought against their restraints for a while until they were stunned again by one of the droids. As Jaira passed the passenger hold she handed over the toddler to one of the slaves in charge of taking care of the children before heading straight to the bridge.  
"We need to go to Zygerria, I will do the selection there before returning to Dromund Kaas," Jaira ordered firmly and as she left the bridge she heard the orders being put out to the crew. The Sith Lord entered her private quarters and requested her guards not to disturb her until they arrived at Zygerria.

* * *

Ashlyn awoke with a start as she sat bolt upright in bed, panic filling her as she tried to think clearly and that was when she heard a soft noise coming from out in the main living area of the private quarters she shared with her Master. The Padawan got up out of bed, pulling her robe on, and left the room as quietly as she could to find her Master exiting through the door so quickly he didn't notice that she was awake. Ashlyn took advantage of this, following her Master and eventually she wound up at the lift up to the Council Chambers. The young teenager was about to turn around and head back to her room when all of a sudden she heard voices getting closer and then she was suddenly grabbed from behind and pulled into a room off the hallway. Whoever had grabbed her had also covered her mouth and was still doing so until the door was closed and Ashlyn turned to find Daly standing behind her. As well as Raven, Gav, Stret and Serin in the room as well.  
"Thanks for the heart attack. I thought I was being kidnapped," Ashlyn growled.  
"Well we weren't going to let you get caught," Daly pointed out as they heard and recognised the voices which were now outside the door which belonged to Masters Unduli, Gallia and Koon.  
"What do you think is going on?" Ashlyn mentioned.  
"I don't know but it can't be good, our Masters are already up there," Raven answered.  
"So how are we going to find out?" Ashlyn asked no one in particular, "Ideas anyone?"  
The five boys merely shook their heads and then they saw Ashlyn's eyes light up in excitement which they all knew by now what it meant.  
"Good cause I do," Ashlyn said, "Daly I'll need you to help cloak us," she added.  
Before they had time to process what the plan was, Ashlyn left the room and they had no real choice but to follow. After a few moments of wandering around the Temple, they ended up at the destination Ashlyn had in mind.  
"The Security Hall?" Daly asked incredulously, "That's your big plan?"  
"Yep and its foolproof," Ashlyn said confidently as she led the way through the door. The six Padawans walked around for a little while as they tried to find the monitor for the Jedi Council Chambers and when they did, all of them sat down to watch.  
"Umm, there's no sound," Gav pointed out.  
"Of course I forgot," Ashlyn mumbled, "Stret, I need you to hardwire this so that there is sound," she added as she turned to him.  
"It might take a fair bit of time you know," Stret pointed out before he ducked under the monitor and started playing around with the wires underneath. It took a few moments but whatever he did it worked as every word the Masters were saying came through loud and clear.  
"First Hoth, now Ord Mantell, we need to put this plan into action right now before any other Enclaves are attacked," Master Skywalker stated clearly.  
"Ord Mantell?" Gav asked, "What's happened on Ord Mantell?" he added with extreme worry.  
"We should be grateful that this time there were fewer deaths and more of them survived," Master Mundi said reassuringly.  
"Yes but for how long will they survive, we don't know what this Sith Lord is doing with them," Master Kenobi retorted.  
"The Jedi Enclave on Ord Mantell has been attacked?" Ashlyn asked incredulously, "Why? How?"  
She turned to Daly hoping he might be able to shed some light on these events but he shook his head, "I'm sorry Ash, I don't anything about Jaira's plans and her motives behind them," he said almost ashamed of himself.  
"Stret, disconnect the audio," Ashlyn requested as she got up and walked out of the room with Daly close behind her. When he caught up to her, Daly held Ashlyn close to him as he wrapped his arms around her body.  
"Ash, it's okay. Everything is going to be alright," Daly tried to reassure her, "The Council are doing everything they can. Come on we should get back to bed," he added as he walked her back to the private quarters.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _I am terribly sorry for my absense, I did not forget about this or anything. Life just got in the way on a massive scale._

 _Ashlyn._


	13. Chapter 12-The Warning

**The Warning**

A few days later, Jaira walked into her private quarters back on Dromund Kaas when suddenly her mind was torn open aggressively by her brother.  
"Why are you doing this, Jaira?" Daly demanded.  
"What? Have you not figured it out yourself yet?" Jaira taunted in amusement.  
The hole was torn wider and she tripped over as she tried to get to the large bed in the middle of the room.  
"You will return all those who you have taken," Daly ordered.  
Jaira chuckled, "I don't think so," she said as she enjoyed her brother's loss of control.  
"There is nothing you can gain by doing this," Daly stated firmly.  
"Oh, believe me, there is," Jaira responded with as she lashed out a full onslaught on Daly's mind. The two twins sat in meditative position hundreds of parsecs away from each other as a battle of wills began.  
"Return them to us and you will be able to go on with your life undisturbed," Daly warned her again and again. His sister, however, was not going to back down that easily and that was exactly what the Jedi Padawan expected.  
"I don't want to kill you Jaira but if you do not divert from your current path I will have no choice," Daly growled. The conversation between the siblings went back and forth for hours until finally Daly gained the upper hand over Jaira. Before he left her mind though Daly sent her another warning, "Return those you have taken or else I will have no choice but to kill you. Both of us know I'm the only one who can."  
Jaira found herself alone in her own mind again as she processed the words her brother had put echoing in her head until she rose to her feet.  
"Riesha!" Jaira yelled and within minutes her cousin entered the room, "Bring the children to me, I'm going to erase their memories of the Jedi and Ord Mantell," she ordered.  
"But Jaira-," Riesha started but was interrupted.  
"Don't you dare question me," Jaira snarled dangerously.  
Riesha left immediately and went to fetch the children who had only just arrived including the Padawans that had been chosen to join the army who had not had their memories wiped yet.

* * *

"Do you think she will do what you have asked?" Jania asked desperately as Daly came out of meditation.  
"I'm not sure but judging by the feelings I'm getting from her now she is very angry and will likely not cooperate with me demands," Daly replied as he sighed in defeat, "Why did I leave her behind?"  
"Mate, I doubt your sister would have been able to survive life on the streets of Nar Shaddaa with us," Raven pointed out, "Besides I don't think it would have made any difference in how she is now," he added.  
"Jaira hates me for leaving her behind," Daly explained, "I'm sure it would have made a great deal of difference."  
"But think about it you weren't willing to make the decision to kill her and now she is obviously trying to make your life a living hell," Gav pointed out, "If you had stuck around to when your father pitted you both against each other would she had killed you?"  
"Yes I have no doubts about that," Daly said, "But only because I would not be able to kill her and then she would have used that weakness to her advantage," he added.  
"We should be out there hunting her down," Treb growled, "Not in here sending her threats through the bond you share with her," he added more impatiently.  
"That would not help anything," Serin pointed out.  
"Not to mention we would very likely be kicked out of the Order," Mayken spoke up for the first time that day.  
"I still say we should go to Dromund Kaas and face this Sith Lord," Treb said before turning and stalking out of the room in a huff after everyone refused to agree with him; even David, Ancor and Bramax did not agree with him this time.  
"We need to keep a close eye on Treb in case he does something stupid," Gav said, "Any volunteers?" he asked.  
Jania raised her hand while nobody else did, "Oh no, I'm not doing this by myself," she stated in irritation.  
"Why not?" Serin asked.  
Jania walked out of the room, grabbing Gav's arm as she walked past him and then proceeded to drag him with her.  
"You're insane if you think I'm doing this on my own," Jania said as Gav started to complain but then thought it best to stop as he knew how stubborn Jania could be when she wanted to.

* * *

 ** _A/N:_** _I decided to make up for my absense by posting several chapters tonight. I have also uploaded the One-shot story for how Daly and Raven met, it is called "Dream of the Future" and you are welcome to go and read it. It is not much but gives a little bit of background to these two boys._

 _Ashlyn._


	14. Chapter 13-Escape

**Escape**

"I don't know why the Jedi Council want us to stand around here and do nothing while this Sith is destroying our way of life and what we stand for," Treb grumbled, "I'm going to put a stop to this once and for all," he added to himself as he walked through the hallways of the Temple. If the Padawan had paid more attention to his surroundings he would have noticed two of his friends following not far behind him. Eventually Jania and Gav arrived at what was obviously Treb's final destination which was the Northern Hangar which was specifically for Intergalactic Transport. Their friend was looking through one of the datapad logs and he obviously found what he needed because he walked over to a Jedi Starfighter with plain white markings. These markings identified the Starfighter as one that was not owned by a particular Jedi Knight or Master.  
"A Jedi Starfighter?" Jania inquired in shock and confusion.  
"Why would he chose a ship that he would not only need an astromech droid for but also needs clearance for a hyperspace ring?" Gav asked no one in particular.  
"I don't know but me knowing Treb as well as I do he has not thought this plan through thoroughly at all," Jania pointed out.  
Gav nodded before stating very simply, "Good point."  
Jania shushed him hurriedly as Treb walked past their hiding spot, "We have to tell Ash," Jania said once Treb was out of sight.  
"Or we can hide out here, wait for Treb to make his move and then stop him before he gets away," Gav suggested.  
Jania thought for a moment and realised that Gav made a good suggestion; if they went to find Ashlyn they might not make it back to the hangar in time to catch Treb before he left; while if they stayed put they would be able to stop their friend themselves.

* * *

"I can't believe Treb still thinks it's a good idea to go hunting for your sister," Ashlyn groaned in frustration as she paced back and forth behind Daly who was sitting down at a table trying to study.  
"Ash?"  
"I mean there is no way to tell where she is going to strike next let alone the likelihood of her leaving Dromund Kaas is slim," Ashlyn continued.  
"Ash?"  
"Plus the other day you all made good points that he would not last ten seconds without one of us who are decent pilots-."  
"Ash?!" Daly interrupted her which made her stop talking and pay attention to what he was about to say.  
He continued after a few minutes of silence to make sure that Ashlyn was finished, "I love you but I'm trying to study and in case you have forgotten we both have an exam tomorrow," he said in a very calm and collected manner.  
Ashlyn smiled sheepishly, "Sorry," she mumbled before dropping into the seat next to him. It was silent for a few more moments when all of sudden Ashlyn jumped up out of her seat and exclaimed in a hushed voice, "I just can't make sense of what Treb is thinking!"  
Daly jumped slightly from the scare the other Padawan gave him from the sudden movement as well as the comment she made.  
"Let's go do something shall we?" Daly asked as he got up from his seat, grabbed her hand and then led Ashlyn out of the Archives. Luckily for them, they had been sitting in a secluded area of the hall which meant no one had heard the Padawan's outbursts of frustration.  
"How does Master Yoda expect me to keep everyone at the Temple and out of trouble?" Ashlyn asked incredulously.  
Daly stopped walking suddenly and then turned to face her, "Ash, can we both just forget about our future for one day. Please forget everything for me; Treb … Jaira … the Sith Army … everything," he said in almost pleading tone. The two Padawans stood there in silence for a few moments while looking at each other deep in the eyes; Ashlyn was the one to break it by saying, "Okay but just for today."  
They began walking through the crowded hall again and Ashlyn asked curiously, "So where are we going?"  
"That is for me to know and for you to find out," Daly replied amusedly and then laughed when Ashlyn groaned. The two of them were so caught up in their own little worlds that they did not notice all the looks they were getting and that they were, in fact, holding hands.

* * *

"I wonder where Jania and Gav have got to," Raven pointed out to the others as they sat down in the mess hall.  
"I haven't seen them since they went to keep an eye on Treb," David commented as he joined them at the table and took a seat next to Bramax.  
"Daly and Ash are nowhere to be seen as usual as well," Ancor added.  
"We don't really need to keep tabs on those two, I have no desire to hunt them down," Raven stated, hoping silently that the others would catch onto his reasons.  
"I just saw them walking out the front doors of the Temple," Stret revealed as he sat down next to David before adding, "They were holding hands which I haven't seen them do before."  
"What?" David asked incredulously, "If the Council catches them they could get kicked out of the Order; I knew Ash and Daly were close but not that close," he added in shock.  
Raven frowned slightly as he thought about what Stret had just said before asking, "Are you sure Stret?"  
Stret nodded his head in a simple, positive manner.  
"I wouldn't worry about Daly and Ash getting into trouble, they have been getting closer every day and I have not seen the Council do anything to stop them," Raven mentioned.  
"You think the Council has given them permission?" Ancor asked quietly.  
Raven shrugged and then stated simply, "Only thing that makes sense."  
After a few moments of silence, the group of Padawans flung into normal everyday conversation while Raven kept quiet pondering on the possibility that two of his best friends were falling in love with each other.  
"Raven are you okay?" Serin inquired in concern from the seat next to him.  
Raven came out of his reverie and sighed deeply before answering, "I'm fine just thinking why Ash and Daly haven't told us," Raven said feeling left out all of a sudden.  
"I'm sure they both have their reasons besides I thought it was kind of obvious with all the time they have been spending with each other by themselves," Serin pointed out.  
Raven was about to reply when all of a sudden Gav and Jania came barging into the mess hall at top speed. They both eventually reached the table their friends were sitting at after almost bowling a lot of other people over in the process of getting to their intended destination.  
"Treb is gone," Jania said through heaving breaths as she tried to regain her usual composure and trying to refill her lungs with oxygen.  
"Gone? What do you mean by gone?" Raven asked directly to the point.  
"He took off in an old Jedi Starfighter," Gav said in a little more detail.  
Raven leapt up from the table and left the room with the others not too far behind him as they headed for the northern hangar bay. Upon arriving there they found several of the staff staring at a scourge mark in the floor which had obviously been where the small spacecraft had been sitting.  
"We need to find Ash and Daly; they need to know what has happened. Stret go tell Master Yoda what has happened while the rest of us will split; make sure you search everywhere," Raven ordered and they all headed off to different areas of the Temple.  
"How are you so sure they are still on Temple grounds?" Stret asked, "They went out the front doors."  
"If they left the premises then they would have taken a speeder and they didn't," Raven pointed out.  
"Good point," Stret agreed before leaving to go find Master Yoda.  
"I'm sorry Raven he slipped past us while we weren't looking," Jania apologised but the older Padawan waved it away.  
"It isn't your fault Jania, I am sure that if Treb wanted to get away this badly then he would have found a way to regardless of whether you two managed to try and stop him," Raven said.  
"Why would he be so reckless?" Gav asked quietly to no one in particular.  
"Treb doesn't usually listen to common sense even when it comes from himself besides he won't get very far as long as all the hyperspace rings stay inactive," Raven said as he realized a whole in their plans to stop Treb from leaving the system. Gav and Jania noticed their friend stop dead in his tracks.  
"Raven?" Jania asked in concern.  
"The rings are always activated unless…I need one of you to go to the control centre and tell the engineers to shut down all the rings," Raven said sternly and without delay, Gav nodded before turning around to sprint off in the opposite direction.  
"I swear when we get a hold of him Treb will wish he had crashed the ship into a sun," Jania growled in frustration.  
"Calm down Jania," Raven said reassuringly.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _What in the name of Tatooine's suns has Treb got himself into now?_

 _I apologise for my absence, I have been busy with work and study but I promise that I am still here_ _and have been wanting to get this chapter to you all. I plan to give you all up to chapter 15 tonight to make up for it. These stories are already written, I am technically up to book 9 which is almost complete, it is just the slow process of proofreading and posting them on here that takes time._

 _Ashlyn Dubreas._


	15. Chapter 14-Orders

**Orders**

It took a few minutes for Treb to get a handle on the controls even though that didn't stop him from almost crashing into other speeders as he left the atmosphere of Coruscant.  
"As long as the rings are still activated this will be a walk in the park," Treb said confidently to himself. However, as he drew closer to the hyperspace rings one by one they were being deactivated right in front of him. The Padawan reacted by slamming his fist on the turbo button and then he began pressing the buttons required to connect the Starfighter up to one of the rings. Luck seemed to be on his side as the ship locked into the ring and he set the coordinates for the planet of Balmorra even though he was not sure why. Next second he was surrounded by the lines that one only ever saw while in hyperspace and Treb relaxed. Surprised at himself that he had managed to get away from the Temple let alone Coruscant and just in time too.  
"Take over piloting R9-T2," Treb ordered and the little astromech droid beeped in reply before taking the controls and continuing to the fly the Starfighter through hyperspace. Treb sat back in the pilot seat and closed his eyes to do some meditation in which the Force revealed to him the impending attack on Balmorra.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ashlyn and Daly walked back through the Jedi Temple doors completely unaware of what had transpired in the previous hour of them exploring the city-planet. Serin then came running around the corner and called out their names when he spotted them.  
"Serin, what's happened?" Ashlyn asked as the older Padawan came to stop in front of them and had to catch his breath before explaining what had happened.  
"Treb is gone?" Ashlyn asked incredulously after Serin finished telling her the story.  
The other Padawan nodded his head, "He took off in an old Jedi Starfighter," he added in more detail.  
Ashlyn groaned, "Great, he's going to get himself killed before he even gets into hyperspace," she said.  
 _'Ash, come to the Council Chambers.'_  
"Come on we have to go," Ashlyn said as she started heading in the direction of the Jedi Council Chambers.  
 _'I'm on my way Master.'  
_ It didn't take them long to get there and when they arrived Ashlyn, Daly and Serin found the other Padawans there with Eric, Inoma and Alazea. They entered the large circular room and found the Jedi Masters in their respected seats. After briefly discussing the details of the events that had happened earlier that day Master Yoda revealed to the group of the Council's decision.  
"Find Padawan Tresbien and bring him back to the Temple you all will, great danger he has put himself in," Master Yoda said in finality.  
"Master Yoda, they are not ready for a solo mission yet," Master Windu objected strongly.  
Master Yoda shook his head, "Ready they are Master Windu," he said sternly as he tried to stop the younger Jedi Master from arguing back.  
"Eric, are you able to go with them?" Master Skywalker asked as he felt slightly anxious at letting the Padawans go without someone to at least keep an eye on them.  
"Of course. Inoma, Alazea?" Eric asked as he turned to the other two Smugglers standing nearby him.  
"Well you can count me in," Inoma agreed and Alazea nodded in confirmation. Then the group left the Council to finish their session. Ashlyn reached out to her Master's mind through their bond and received reassurance that she would be fine. Once out of the lift the group went their separate ways to go get ready to leave within the hour. As Mayken strode down a hallway she bumped into Paulo.  
"I can't talk for long Paulo," Mayken said as he began telling her about what he had learnt in his classes.  
"Why? What's happening?" Paulo asked worriedly.  
"I'll be leaving on a mission in an hour," Mayken answered simply.  
"Really? Can I come?" he asked almost pleadingly.  
"I'm sorry but it would be too dangerous for you," Mayken said, "You will get your chance to go on plenty of missions when you're a Padawan," she added as she then continued in the direction of her quarters that she shared with Master Tano. Upon reaching her destination Mayken packed a small bag and slung it over her shoulder before heading for the northern hangar. Halfway to the hangar, she met up with Jania and Gav before all three of the Padawans continued towards where they could sense everyone else waiting for them.  
"We better get on board straight away," Jania said as they arrived to find the others already walking up the ramp of the Scoundrels Constellation which was docked in the area that was usually used for the star cruisers of the Republic fleet. Once onboard they headed straight for the bridge, dropping their bags off in the crew quarters on the way there. Each of the Padawans were at different stations and areas of the ship while Eric, of course, was in the pilot seat which was what they all expected. Inoma was in the engine room with Stret, Ancor, Bramax and David who were doing checks on all the equipment to make sure it was in good working order. Chewbacca would be flying the Millennium Falcon which was currently in the hangar of the Scoundrels Constellation while Alazea flew the White Star. Ashlyn, Raven, Serin and Daly were on the other primary functions of the ship while Stones was in the Wolf Star-Runner, awaiting orders.  
"Jania, Gav I need you both to go down to the docking bay and join Alazea in case she needs gunners," Eric said once he noticed the three of them had arrived.  
The two Padawans nodded before heading for the exit again to get onto the White Star which was right next to the Scoundrels Constellation.  
"Mayken, I need you to go to the Engine room and go with Inoma when she leaves on the Millennium Falcon. Under no circumstances leave her side," Eric said making sure she understood. The young girl nodded before following his orders.  
"Are you all ready?" Eric asked the four Padawans still on the bridge with him.  
"Ready as I'll ever be," Ashlyn responded with the boys giving firm nods in agreement as they started the take-off procedure.  
It wasn't long before they were in the air and heading for the space around the planet when Serin sat down with the comlink that had belonged to Treb which he had obviously deliberately left behind. As he was in control of the hyperdrive he would not be needed until he was able to track their friend's whereabouts. The eldest out of the Padawans placed the small item in front of him before closing his eyes and opening his mind to the flow of the Force. It took him a few moments but when he saw the planet of Balmorra he opened his eyes.  
"Balmorra, that's where he's going," Serin said in complete confidence as he leapt to his feet and locked the coordinates into the Navi-computer. The hyperdrive booted up and once they were in Hyperspace the lines appeared outside the bridge window and the group could relax for the meantime.  
"It will take us an entire day to get to Balmorra," Ashlyn groaned in frustration.  
"I'm just glad I made those upgrades to the hangar bay otherwise we wouldn't be able to fit the Millennium Falcon, Wolf Star-Runner and three Jedi Starfighters," Eric said in exasperation.  
"Thanks for coming, Eric," Ashlyn said appreciatively, "I hope this won't cause much trouble for you," she added apologetically.  
"Don't mention it," Eric replied as he motioned for the teenagers to follow him, "I want to show you all something," he added in more explanation.  
The Smuggler led the four of them through the large ship when he suddenly heard a peculiar noise from under the floor in the old smuggling compartments. A deep frown of confusion appeared on his face and upon lifting one of the boards he found the maker of the noise.  
"Oh great," Paulo groaned as Eric lifted him up out of the compartment by the scruff of his robes.  
"Paulo?" Ashlyn asked, "What are you doing here?" she inquired curiously.  
"Well I didn't want to be left behind so I decided to come along," Paulo said sheepishly as he toed the floor beneath him.  
"Lucky for you we are already in Hyperspace and there is no way I'm going back to Coruscant now so you better make yourself useful and go to the Engine room," Eric growled in slight annoyance.  
Paulo's eyes lit up and he went into a run towards the back of the ship when the Smuggler added something else.  
"When Inoma leaves on the Falcon I want you to be up in one of the gunner towers," Eric ordered, "You do know how to use a gunner tower don't you?" he asked just to be sure.  
"Yes!" Paulo called out in joy as he continued running.

* * *

 ** _A/N:_** _The team of OCs first mission together without any canon characters. This is so exciting!_

 _Ashlyn Dubreas._


	16. Chapter 15-Arrival

**Arrival**

Meanwhile, Darth Xaeven knelt before Jaira who was sitting on her throne in the audience hall of the citadel on Dromund Kaas.  
"Do not fail me Xaeven. I want you to bring every last person on that planet's surface to me," Jaira said, "Do whatever you need to accomplish this task and you will be rewarded."  
"Yes Master," Darth Xaeven replied as he rose and left the hall to find the army of Sith awaiting him. As he walked to the spaceport the overwhelming numbers blindly followed him and he placed his hood over his head, the fabric half-covering his face. This was his chance to prove himself worthy to be the First Son of the Empress in which he felt extremely confident in his abilities to do so. The young Sith Apprentice walked halfway up the loading ramp of the Avenger and turned around to face the army unfolding in front of him.  
"In a few days' time, we will be on the surface of Balmorra which is currently a Jedi Agricorps planet. Our Empress has made our mission very clear. We are not to harm the failed students but to bring them here to Dromund Kaas," Darth Xaeven called out for everyone to hear. His audience was listening very attentively which gave him the confidence to continue with his speech.  
"Capture as many people as you can and keep the kill count low," the First Son ended with as he turned back around and entered the starship with the army not too far behind him.

* * *

The next day on Balmorra, Master Krael approached the Jedi Starfighter that had just landed rather roughly on the landing platform of the Agricorps base. As he reached it, the latch lifted to reveal a Jedi Padawan who seemed very worried about something.  
"Hello Master," Treb greeted as he bowed respectfully, "Unfortunately I have come to inform you of an impending attack on Balmorra," he added gravely.  
The Jedi Master frowned slightly as this information was explained to him and that he would have to evacuate the planet immediately.  
"Well there is no time to waste Padawan-," Master Krael began but paused as he did not know the student's name.  
"Tresbien, Aurick Tresbien," Treb finished for the Jedi Master and flinched when he had to say his first name.  
The Jedi Master and Padawan walked briskly to the main buildings of the base to begin the preparations for the evacuation which upon receiving the stats would take several days and that caused Treb to become slightly annoyed but he tried not to show it. Upon entering the security hall, Master Krael went straight to one of the main control panels which turned out to be the terminal reserved for the evacuation of the base.  
"We don't have many ships big enough to get everyone off the planet it will take us about three days to get everybody out of the system," Master Krael said.  
"Then we need to get as many people as possible out, when the army arrives I will go out to meet them," Treb said, "Get the children and women off the planet first and have every able-bodied person stay to help fight," he added as he watched on the screens people running for the hangars and onto ships.  
"Padawan, do you know when the army is going to arrive by any chance?" the Jedi Master inquired curiously.  
Treb shook his head solemnly, "No, I don't."  
The Padawan could not shake off the bad feeling he was getting, like his efforts would be for naught and that he was too late to save these people from the dark cloud that was slowly and surely closing in on them.

* * *

The fleet of starships came out of Hyperspace smoothly and that was when Darth Xaeven saw the target planet, Balmorra. As they approached it, ships were coming out of the planet's atmosphere and the Apprentice could sense huge numbers of life forms onboard.  
"Activate the tractor beams! We must capture those ships at all costs!" Darth Xaeven barked out orders to the naval officers. Within minutes his fleet had managed to detain three of the five ships that had been trying to escape.  
"My lord, shall we send the shuttles down to the planet's surface?" an officer asked through the communication channel from the ship hangar.  
"Yes Captain," Darth Xaeven confirmed, "Send all but one of the shuttles, I wish to go down to the surface myself but not quite yet," he added.  
"Very good milord," came the steady reply and then after a few minutes, Darth Xaeven could see the shuttles heading for the surface of the planet below.  
"Aim all fire on the planet, target building structures," Darth Xaeven said, "Once the beacons are activated target those locations."  
The naval officers followed his orders and blaster fire began to rain down through the atmosphere of Balmorra with many bombs amongst them.  
"My lord we have run into a few problems, we need backup," a voice came from the communication terminal.  
"Cease all fire! Get into the atmosphere and stop any who try to leave the planet without one of our codes," Darth Xaeven ordered in finality and then left for the hangar. Once he arrived in the hangar he didn't even stop in his stride to talk to anyone and boarded his shuttle straight away without hesitation to find the top ranking Initiates inside as he had requested of them to do.  
"Pilot, take us down to the planet surface," he ordered.  
"Yes, my lord."  
Once out of the hangar of the Avenger, the First son revealed his plan to the Initiates of what they would be doing upon landing on the ground.  
"You have all been selected because you are the best, the elite of all the Initiates on Dromund Kaas," Darth Xaeven explained his reason for selecting them all individually, "It is your task to help me capture as many of the Jedi Knights and Masters that are here as possible as the Empress needs more fully trained Jedi to begin their lives as slaves for the Empire and to test the methods that have already started to develop on Zygerria."  
"But how do we know that they didn't escape on those two ships that managed to get through our blockade?" one of the Initiates asked.  
"No, the Knights and Masters would have stayed behind and let those who were more vulnerable to leave the planet first," another Initiate pointed out.  
"This won't be quick job will it, my lord?" another asked slightly nervous.  
Darth Xaeven nodded, "It will take at least a few days before we return to Dromund Kaas but we must focus on the task at hand," he said simply.  
"How are you so certain that the Knights and Masters are inside the buildings and not out in the field or some secret emergency bunker?" Anikar asked in an accusing sort of fashion.  
Darth Xaeven turned his glaring gaze on the much older man who had come out the very top in the classes since his arrival into the Sith Army.  
"Anikar, the only reason you are on this special force team is because you are top of your class and the Empress requested your involvement but if it were up to me you would back with the fleet cleaning out the lavatories on the Avenger," the Sith Apprentice growled in warning, "On top of that, I am the First Son which means you either listen to me or die," he finished in finality. The tension in the shuttle had now grown so thick that one could slice it with a lightsaber as the First Son of the Empress used his own authoritative powers on the older man. The Sith Initiates knew from the rumours that had been spreading around the Dromuund Kaas training grounds of late what happens to those who disobey the direct order of one of the Force Born.  
"We are about to land, my lord," the pilot alerted him simply.  
"Very good pilot, now does everyone understand what they have to do?" Darth Xaeven asked to receive confirmation. All the Initiates nodded their heads simply in confirmation that they understood the plan and their individual roles in it.  
Then they felt the shuttle hit the ground and the group immediately ran out but sadly as the pilot took off the shuttle was hit by a torpedo and it plummeted to the ground, landing in a heap of junk. The young Sith Apprentice could now understand why the Initiate had called for back up, the field which had obviously once held crops was now a battlefield of Sith, Jedi and civilians.  
"You all know what to do!" Darth Xaeven yelled over the noise before he activated his lightsaber and approached the battle with haste and confidence. Two Jedi Knights approached him and both fought quite well but they were soon stunned by an X9 droid before being cuffed and hurled back to where those who had already been captured were being held.  
"Weak," he scoffed as he continued on his way towards the buildings. He enjoyed the sight of his plans working right before his eyes and he knew that his Master would be very impressed with the results of the raid.

* * *

Meanwhile, the Scoundrels Constellation and White Star came out of Hyperspace travel at exactly the same time to the view of the planet below and the blockade surrounding it. Everyone jumped into action immediately as Inoma, Paulo and Mayken boarded the Millennium Falcon and took off out of the hangar. Followed shortly by the Wolf Star-Runner with Stones, Stret and David who headed straight for the planet.  
"Get to the Starfighters now!" Eric yelled at the four teens who rushed to the hangar and passed Bramax and Ancor as the other two climbed the ladders up into the gunner towers.  
"Good luck!" Bramax called to Ashlyn, Daly, Serin and Raven as they ran past him, all of them nodded in response before continuing to the hangar.  
Ashlyn jumped into the blue and white fighter with R2-D2 already in the droid port as she remembered how insistent her Master had been on her taking R2 and his fighter.  
"Okay R2, are you ready?" Ashlyn asked as she put the headset on and heard the beeps of confirmation from the old astromech droid.  
Daly was in his Master's old maroon and white Starfighter as well but his droid was R6-S4 while Raven was in a yellow and white Starfighter with R2-K1. Serin had a purple and white Starfighter and R4-D3.  
"Starting up engines," Raven said as he began pressing controls and the others began to do the same. It wasn't long before they were all out of the hangar and were faced with an army of fighters coming towards them from the starships.  
"Enemy fighters closing in," Serin said, "Are you guys ready for this?" he asked.  
"Ready? I was born ready," Raven responded in a humour-filled voice.  
Ashlyn laughed as she gave her response, "I've gotten sick of simulators, so yes I am definitely ready for this."  
Daly nodded, "Of course, I'm not new to this," he replied.  
"Don't worry guys, you're not in it alone," Alazea's voice came out of the silence.  
"Of course not, I wouldn't let you four have all the fun," Inoma added in there with a laugh.  
Then the enemy fighters reached them and the only talking that was done were communications to coordinate what to do.

* * *

 _ **A/N:** The suspense of it all! What do you think is going to happen?_

Ashlyn.


	17. Chapter 16-Too Late

**Too Late**

"You both might want to go get ready to jump out when the cargo door drops," Stones suggested as he approached the surface of the planet.  
"Make sure you get us as close as you can to Treb," Stret said nervously as he and David left the cockpit of the Wolf Star-Runner.  
"Treb is going to be glad that Eric chose you and me to go down and get him instead of Jania," David joked.  
"I don't think that is going to save him from her though," Stret pointed out.  
"Hmm, yeah that is a good point," David mumbled before he laughed but then stopped when the loading ramp opened up and the two Padawans could see the ground rushing underneath.  
"You ready?" Stret asked.  
"To jump out a cargo hold of a ship and onto solid ground right in the middle of a battlefield?" David asked with a great amount of speed and then swallowed, "Nope."  
As David responded he jumped out of the cargo hold and landed roughly on the ground in a crouch with Stret not too far behind him. Upon landing the two Padawans were immediately surrounded by Sith Initiates.  
"Surrender Jedi," one of them ordered.  
Then David and Stret shared a look, nodded to each other and then activated their lightsabers. Within fifteen minutes the six Initiates were on the ground clutching some part of their body that was now missing.  
"Together we accomplish great things, alone not so much," David said in his Yoda-impersonation voice. The two friends laughed as they headed for where they could sense Treb on the battlefield, both of them had to face many Sith along the way.  
"Lucky we haven't run into any of those droids yet," David mentioned.  
"How about we don't jinx that particular thing?" Stret requested.  
David quirked his head to the side slightly as he thought about it and then nodded his head in agreement, "Good point."  
As they continued stalking through the area at a low crouch, Stret suddenly held out his arm to stop David who was about to go around some debris.  
"What is it?" David asked curiously.  
Stret put a finger to his lips to single silence which caused David to become more concerned than he had been before.  
 _Can you hear that?_ Stret asked through their mental bond.  
David strained his hearing to try and hear what his friend claimed to be able to hear but nothing reached his ears.  
 _Nope, besides I am not the one who took the Beginners Force Senses course last year._ David replied simply and matter-of-factly.  
 _Hmm, good point._ Stret said as he blushed slightly from the embarrassment of his forgetfulness.  
 _Never mind that though. What do you hear?_ David inquired curiously.  
Stret looked at the ground with such focus that the younger teenager wondered what he was doing but then realised his friend must be straining his hearing or trying to put a name on the noise.  
"Stret?" David asked quietly as he started to get more worried with every second that went by where Stret remained silent.  
"I don't know what is making the noise," Stret whispered back his reply, "You stay here I'm gonna go check it out."  
The older Padawan, still in a low crouch, snuck around the debris and disappeared from sight for only a few mere minutes. David stayed put forcing himself not to follow his friend but then he heard yelling from the other side of the debris.  
"Oh for Manaan sakes," David growled as he ran around the pile of debris to find a shocking sight lying before him.

* * *

Earlier, Treb stood on the slight rise waiting as he watched the Sith Apprentice approach him casually as if he ignored or relished in the fact that he was walking over corpses instead of ground and in blood instead of soil. It felt like a millennia had passed but in actuality, it had been mere minutes that it had taken for the black-clad teenager to reach him, red lightsaber in one hand with a curved hilt.  
"Turn around and go back to the black hole from whence you came!" Treb called out in a strong and determined warning.  
"Now why would I do that?" the Sith Apprentice replied as he came to a stop right in front of Treb and the Jedi Padawan realized that this Sith had to be the same age as Mayken albeit maybe a little older. Treb became confused by this realisation and could not piece together why Daly's twin sister would send a child as a leader in her sted.  
"I am Darth Xaeven, First Son of the Empress and leader of this almighty army of Sith!" the Sith Apprentice introduced himself before bowing slightly with a scowl on his face.  
"I am Senior Jedi Padawan Treb Tresbien of the Jedi Order!" Treb responded promptly and bowed slightly, "I give you this warning again, Leave now and no harm will come to you!"  
Darth Xaeven was silent for a few minutes and then laughed, "Now why would I do that?" he asked.  
The Sith Apprentice did not even wait for a response before leaping towards Treb and crashing his red blade against Treb's green blade. Darth Xaeven struck again and again in quick precision as his opponent tried to keep pace with him in blocking each of his strikes.  
"I am curious about one thing, why are you ashamed about your name?" the younger of the two asked in amusement.  
"What would give you that idea?" Treb growled back and their lightsabers clashed a few more times.  
"Well I gather your parents would not call you that name seeing as it's derived from your last name that would just be too cruel," Darth Xaeven replied as he did an effective leg strike which Treb did manage to jump over but fell to the ground because he was standing on a slope. He rolled down the slight rise with his opponent following him and upon reaching the bottom Treb jumped to his feet just in time to block a blow to his shoulder.  
"Your style could use a bit of work," Darth Xaeven commented as he tried to stir Treb up which he could tell was slightly working but he just needed the thing that would send the Senior Padawan over the edge of control.  
"Let's play a little game, shall we?" the Sith Apprentice asked and continued without waiting for a response from Treb, "If I guess your real name you will surrender but if I don't manage to guess then I will leave and take my army with me," he offered.  
Treb frowned deeply and doubted that this kid would be able to guess his real name, "Go ahead, I don't really care. You won't succeed but you only get ten guesses."  
Darth Xaeven nodded in agreement, "Let me see, A?" he said as he struck at Treb's gut which he managed to deflect off his own blade.  
"Ahh, it starts with A," Darth Xaeven said pleasantly as he saw confirmation on his opponent's face upon saying the letter, "Your parents must have thought very highly of you."  
"What makes you so sure?" Treb asked as he tried to throw the Sith Apprentice off at the same time as doing a leg strike which Darth Xaeven easily jumped over.  
"Aton?" the Sith began to guess.  
"Aaron…Arcutali…Archie…Aur-," he said them all in a long line but then saw Treb's frown deepen which made him stop and think.  
"Aurant…Aurjet…Aurgect," he listed in great amusement and then he grinned as the last name rolled off his tongue, "Aurick."  
Treb froze from the shock but then his mind started to catch up and when it did his body hit full speed managing maneuverers that he knew were dangerous for him to do but he no longer cared.  
"Treb!" a voice called out his name from behind him and as he turned around he suddenly dropped to the ground in a crouch with his hand clutched over his eyes from the excruciating pain. He could feel a thick liquid gathering around his hand trying to escape and Treb frowned as he thought to himself and tried to figure out why he was crying.

* * *

Stret and David ran towards their friend who was on the ground covering his face which was covered in blood. David grasped his upper arm and pulled his friend up into a standing position as Stret approached the Sith Apprentice.  
"Who are you?" Treb asked in shock as his body began to shiver from the loss of so much blood in such a small space of time.  
"It's okay Treb, it's me David and Stret is here too," David said reassuringly as he looked up at Stret who looked scarier than ever before. The look on his friend's face was enough to even scare him which is why he followed Stret's next order without any hesitation.  
"David, take Treb away and call Stones to come pick us up. Hurry he might not have much time left," Stret said confidently and he was relieved when he sensed his friend leaving the immediate area. Now he could focus solely on the Sith in front of him and deal with him accordingly and with more confidence than he had ever had before.  
"I am Jedi Knight Morenci Haemin. Leave here now and no action will be taken against you!" Stret called over the noise of the battle around them.  
Darth Xaeven laughed maniacally, "Do you think I am stupid? Jedi Knight?" he scoffed, "I can see your Padawan braid. You're no more than puny little Padawan like your friends over there!"  
The Sith Apprentice re-activated his lightsaber and spun it out into a ready stance as he offered the Padawan to a duel.  
"I don't want to fight you," Stret said.  
"Too bad," Xaeven whispers in reply before lunging at Stret who managed to activate his lightsaber in time to block the blow that was dealt. The green and red blades ground against each other making that ear-splitting screeching noise that was sure to make them both deaf if it continued to ring in their ears. Stret broke the lock and made to strike his opponent in the legs but was blocked as if this fight was a walk in the park. Darth Xaeven responded by kicking out with his left foot which collided with Stret's ribcage knocking him breathless for a few minutes.  
"Interesting, mother always spoke very highly of you. It was always Morenci this, Morenci that," the Sith Apprentice pointed out matter-of-factly as he did a rather good impersonation of their mother's voice.  
Stret frowned as he tried to process this information and ended up shaking his head as the realisation of what had just been said hit home in Stret's mind.  
"What are you talking about?" Stret asked still in shock of this new discovery.  
"Well technically she wasn't your mother because even though you were at the Jedi Temple lazing around and spoilt I was the one out in the fields with father day in and day out," Darth Xaeven pointed out, "Yet you were the favourite, always overshadowing me from a distance and I wasn't special enough because I wasn't born force-sensitive."  
"Braxis?" Stret inquired as he deactivated his lightsaber which turned out to be a mistake.  
"Well now we are even and I am more powerful than you will ever be," Darth Xaeven said in finality as he struck at his older brother's shoulder. Stret came out of his shock just in time to block the strike quickly and then he heard someone call out behind him. The Padawan turned his head slightly and saw the Wolf Star-Runner hovering just above the ground with the cargo hold door wide open and David standing on the ramp.  
"Stret! Come on!" David called as he waved his arm back and forth to get his friend's attention. When the ship got closer to him Stret jumped up and onto the ramp as it got pulled up into the hull of the ship and the Wolf Star-Runner took off into the space around Balmorra.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _Bombshell drop! Yes, Darth Xaeven is Stret's little brother Braxis. Treb is very badly wounded, both his ego and physically. Can't say Jania didn't warn him about his name being a weakness coming back to bite him in the ass someday. If it wasn't obvious Xaeven was dipping into his mind very lightly as well as relying on Treb's facial expressions to guess his name._

 _Ashlyn._


	18. Chapter 17-Report

**Report**

A few days later on Dromuund Kaas. Darth Xaeven walked through the tall double doors of the audience hall and approached the throne that the Empress sat in, high on the platform. Following the Sith Apprentice was an army of Initiates dragging prisoners with them, the numbers were so vast that the doors were kept wide open as not all of the army could fit in the large hall.  
"I am impressed at how successful you were on this mission my young Apprentice," Jaira said in greeting as she stood up and met him at the bottom step of the platform. Darth Xaeven knelt down in front of his Master and remained silent until she asked him a direct question.  
"How many?" Jaira asked curiously.  
"We captured five hundred civilians, up to a hundred Jedi Padawans, Knights and Masters, and twelve hundred failed Jedi," he replied humbly.  
"Tut…tut…how disappointing," Jaira said softly in a disappointed tone, "Where are the others?"  
"They had warning of our attack and as we arrived five ships tried to leave the system but only two of them managed to get away. All other ships that tried to leave after our blockade was in full working order no others left the atmosphere," Darth Xaeven explained.  
"My lord!" a voice called out from the front of the group and it turned out to be one of the Senior Initiates.  
"Karki!" Jaira screeched at him, "How dare you talk to me without being requested to do so," she added in a guttural growl of a voice.  
"He has just lied to you one ship did manage to get away near the end of the attack but the occupants weren't originally on the planet when we got there. They arrived after we did and attacked our fleet with their own fleet amongst the group were four Jedi Starfighters," Karki said even though he knew the consequences for speaking out of turn were fatal he was willing to take that chance if it meant his Empress being told the truth.  
Jaira frowned deeper than before as she looked between the Initiate and her Apprentice a few times before stopping on the young teenager in front of her.  
"Is this true?" Jaira growled in a dangerous tone.  
Darth Xaeven tore eye contact away from her and looked at his boot as he nodded his head slowly and silently crossed his heart hoping that she would not activate her own red bladed lightsaber and kill him right then and there.  
"Well my child, I will have to punish you for this mistake," Jaira said as her anger and frustration began to build up in her chest.  
Darth Xaeven gulped as he nodded his head and waited with bated breath for his Master to activate her lightsaber but she did not do so, instead lightning shot out of her fingertips. All he could see was electric blue light as the lightning ravaged the right side of his face. The boy tried to remain where he was but eventually, his body couldn't deal with the pain anymore and he collapsed at feet of his Master and the Empress. The hall was silent for a few minutes after that as everyone was too afraid to say or do anything not even breathe.  
"Will someone get him out of my sight and take him to the Medical bay?" Jaira requested rashly as she turned back to her throne and took her seat. Upon facing the crowd again she found her Apprentice gone which enabled her to forget about this little mistake of his and continue on with the work that needed to be done by her. One by one all the prisoners were bought before her and she decided their fate, most of the Knights and Masters went straight to the spaceport to await travel to Zygerria in a few days' time while the civilians all had a choice to join the Empire as a citizen or become a slave. As Jaira expected almost all of them chose to become citizens of the Empire while very few remained loyal to the Republic. The Padawans and failed students, however, were given ample opportunity to join the Sith Army and prove themselves worthy to wield a lightsaber. Again with this group, most of the failed Jedi students jumped at the offer and accepted without thinking of the consequences while all but three of the Padawans chose to go with their Masters to Zygerria. The whole ordeal took around six hours to complete and as she sent the army away a slave entered with some news.  
"Darth Xaeven is now awake Empress," she humbly said before leaving the audience hall immediately which Jaira was happy to see, as at that particular moment, she wished to be left alone to think.

* * *

A few days prior as the Scoundrels Constellation was preparing to jump into Hyperspace.  
"Start shutting down the engines for me would you R2," Ashlyn requested as she flew the Starfighter into the hangar of the Scoundrels Constellation. However, before the landing gear was out Ashlyn opened the latch and jumped out of the small fighter. Raven, Serin and Daly were not too far behind her as she headed straight to the medical bay which was situated not too far away from the hangar.  
"Ash! Slow down! Treb isn't going anywhere. Remember what Inoma said about him being out cold," Daly called out as he rushed to catch up with her.  
"I should have kept an eye on him myself," Ashlyn retorted as she tried to push past the taller Padawan who was now blocking her way to the med bay.  
"I think you should wait before you see him," came Stret's voice as he came out of the door that his friend was so desperate to enter.  
"What's happened to him Stret?" Ashlyn asked almost begging for an answer.  
The teenager shook his head slowly with a look of dread on his face and Ashlyn knew immediately that whatever it was the damage was extensive. Daly made contact with Stret through their bond and frowned upon hearing the other teenager's thoughts as he tried to process something he discovered on Balmorra.  
"Raven?" Daly asked, "You go in first, I'll be in there shortly."  
Raven nodded in agreement and then entered the room to find his friend lying on a bed with his face covered in blood-stained bandages and only hanging onto life through life support.  
The Padawan reached out through the force into the bond he shared with Treb and found no response which did not help settle his concerns about his friend's state of mind.  
"Treb, you idiot," he whispered in disappointment and sadness.  
"Stret thinks that the healers at the Temple might be able to help him," Daly said as he came to stand next to his best friend.  
"Ash?" Raven asked curiously.  
"Is still out in the hall with Stret, Jania and Gav," Daly answered simply, "Stret told me that a Sith slashed a lightsaber across Treb's eyes."  
"I don't think even the healers at the Temple will be able to fix this," Raven said as he gestured to their friend, "But we can't stop Ash from seeing this, you know that don't you?"  
"Yes but I want to give her time to process that Treb is injured and that more importantly, it wasn't her fault," Daly explained his reasons.  
"Master Yoda should have never put her under all that stress of having to keep us all in check," Raven scowled, "It's not anyone's responsibility except our own."  
Daly nodded, "I'm sure Master Yoda had his reasons," he said as he turned around and left the room.  
Ashlyn jumped on him with questions instantly, "Is he okay?"  
Daly pulled Ashlyn into a hug and held her against him comfortingly as he tried to find the words to explain to her what had happened.

* * *

 ** _A/N:_** _Only two more chapters to post for this story before moving onto Book 6._

 _Ashlyn._


	19. Chapter 18-Contemplation

**Contemplation**

Treb was unconscious for a few weeks as the healers tried many therapies and methods to heal his injury but eventually, all sources were exhausted. Jedi Healer Dimatchi entered his room to take him out of the force-induced coma and found all of the Padawan's friends there in the room.  
"He should wake up in a few minutes if he doesn't within fifteen minutes then please come and get me," she explained.  
Most of the Padawans acknowledged that they had heard her and then the Jedi Healer proceeded to wake Treb up before leaving the room briskly.  
The room was dead silent for the next few minutes as everyone waited in bated breath for their friend to wake up. Jania was the first to notice any signs of life when Treb's hand twitched and was shortly followed by a groan. As they expected as soon as he awoke fully the Padawan panicked and began trying to rip the bandage off and away from his face.  
"Treb stop," Stret said as he then pinned both of his friend's hands down onto the bed and away from his face.  
"What?" Treb asked no one in particular, "Stret, is that you?"  
"Yes but you need to keep the bandage over your eyes mate," Stret said firmly as he slowly let go of his hands.  
"Why?" Treb inquired almost scared of the answer.  
Daly stepped towards the bed and reached out his hand to touch Treb's arm before speaking softly, "Treb, it's me."  
"Daly," Treb said in confirmation of himself more than anything else as he recognised the voice and connected it through the bond that he shared with his friend.  
"Mate, when you fought that Sith on Balmorra he did a head strike and damaged your eyes very extensively," Daly said as everyone remained silent as the results of the injury were explained to Treb.  
"So surely the Jedi Healers can fix it?" Treb asked and then panicked when he didn't get an answer straight away.  
"They've tried for weeks and nothing has worked," Raven said as he came to stand next to the bed alongside Daly.  
Treb fell into complete silence as he withdrew himself into his own mind to try and process the information that had just been revealed to him. However, he could still hear words of comfort and support from his friends who were all in the room.  
"Could I be left alone for a little while?" Treb requested in a very soft voice. Everyone nodded but then realised that he would not see it so Stret responded verbally.  
"Sure mate, we'll be right outside if you need us," he said simply as everyone left the room and gathered outside in the hallway.  
"One of us should go tell Healer Dimatchi that Treb is awake," Raven suggested.  
"I'll go," Jania responded as she left down the hallway to go find the Jedi Healer in charge of taking care of Treb to inform her that he was awake.

* * *

It was at least a few more weeks before Treb was released from the Medical Bay and when he did his friends escorted him back to his private quarters. Master Koon had enrolled his Padawan in a course to help him adjust to being blind, from now on he would have to rely on the Force and his other senses. Sadly though most Jedi with this sort of disability if they do manage to get to Knighthood rarely leave the Temple unless they could prove themselves capable of handling themselves on missions.  
"I'll be with you in all your classes mate until you get a handle on things," Stret said reassuringly. This had a calming effect on Treb as currently, he was using Daly and Raven as guides through the Temple.  
"It feels so weird not being able to see with my eyes, I have to pay even more attention to the Force than ever before," Treb revealed.  
"Didn't you always want to be a Miraluka though?" Gav asked reminding his friend of the fantasy he had when they had learnt about the legendary race in a history class as Younglings.  
Treb laughed softly, "Yes but I'm sure they had an easier time than I do," he added amusedly.  
"Okay we are here," Raven revealed to him and Treb paid extra attention to his surroundings and reached his hand out directly in front of him, found the button to the door and opened it with ease before entering the private quarters.

* * *

"Damn it, not again," Treb groaned as he went through the simple obstacle in the Force senses class that his Master had enrolled him in. So far he had knocked over three chairs, bumped into two tables, tripped on four rugs and now he walked into the wall.  
Stret and Master Rhito who had lost his leg during the Clone Wars, which was now a prosthetic limb, watched from the end of the course.  
"Treb, you just need to be patient, everything will work out with time and practice," Stret said positively.  
"Yeah well I am sick of looking like a fool," Treb retorted in frustration.  
"You would benefit from practising the techniques I have shown you with your Master whom you seem to forget doesn't have very good eyesight himself," Master Rhito stated.  
"Yes but Master Koon was born like that," Treb argued.  
"He can still be a great deal of help to you Treb," Stret said as he led his friend out of the classroom seeing as it was the end of the lesson.  
Treb had improved in navigating the Temple as long as he had one of his friends with him leading him to the destination. Mainly because he still needed to work on where things in the large and complicated building were through the way the Force saw things.  
"It doesn't matter I'm not going to get better," Treb complained none too loudly either.  
"That is a whole lot of Jawa fodder," Stret said confidently.  
"Alright, I'll prove it to you," Treb said before focusing solely on the area he was in before guessing the location, "We are currently in the corridor outside the mess hall."  
"No Treb, we are on the opposite side of the Temple to the mess hall. I am standing in front of lift that goes up to the Council of First Knowledge chambers," Stret replied, "Which is nearby the staff kitchens so you got close."  
"I'm never going to get the hang of this," Treb groaned in frustration.  
"Well not with that attitude you're not," Stret said simply, "And you are getting better, right now I'm walking ahead of you by five metres which is more than you were comfortable with yesterday," he added in encouragement.  
The two friends walked in silence for the rest of the journey to the mess hall to meet up with the others for lunch. During which time Treb was in deep thought about how his friends were trying so hard to still include him even after he put not only his life on the line but their lives as well when they rescued him. Now he was nothing but a burden and it was a constant annoyance that none of his friends seemed to be disgruntled towards him for having to have someone with him every second of every day.  
"I don't belong here anymore," Treb said to himself and didn't realise until it was too late that he had said the comment out loud.  
"What are you talking about Treb? This is your home," Bramax said horrified that the older Padawan would even think such a thing was true.  
"Mate you just need to give yourself time to adjust," Daly commented simply.  
Treb heard his friends but as Master Yoda had always said that hearing isn't listening, it was one of those speeches that most Younglings and Padawans let wash over their heads. Jania was the only one who seemed to have noticed that this saying was applying to Treb right then in that situation. However after vowing silent treatment as an effective punishment for her friend she did start to doubt that maybe it wasn't the best thing to do and then she remembered what she had said to Gav the week before, "I told him so."  
"Treb?" Jania asked getting his attention quickly, "You do belong here, this place is your home and the Jedi Order is your family," she added as she rose from her seat.  
As the younger Padawan walked past Treb she placed a hand on his shoulder and sent him calming waves to him through the Force which took effect immediately.  
 _And that will never change._ Jania said to him softly through the bond of friendship they shared but rarely ever used until now.  
 _Thanks, Jania._ Treb replied with a smile on his face but as Jania's presence got further and further away so too did the calm feeling that she had given him. Along with that, the dark thoughts came back. Ones of failure and worthlessness, which did not help the dilemma that now faced him.  
 _Do I stay or leave?_  
The question haunted him throughout the day and kept him up at night as he weighed the pros and cons of the decision that he had to make.  
"It is completely up to you," Master Koon's voice echoed in his head after a conversation that Treb had with the Kel Dor Master a few days previous. His Master had explained to him what would happen if he did decide to leave the Order. The Council would give him enough credits to get him to his desired destination and then from that point on there would be no more aid from the Order.  
"But where would I go?" Treb asked himself repeatedly listing different places in his head, some he dismissed immediately while others he pondered constantly.

* * *

 ** _A/N:_** _Only one more chapter of Book 5 left to post. I hope everyone is enjoying the series so far. Please submit reviews, I love to read what my readers are thinking._

 _Ashlyn._


	20. Chapter 19-One of the Lost

**One of the Lost**

Several weeks had passed when Treb requested an audience with the Jedi Council and was ready to make a final decision of leaving the Jedi Order. All of his friends were surprised when in session with their Masters when Master Yoda called the Senior Padawan forward to stand in the middle of the circular room.

"Requested to speak with us you did Padawan," Master Yoda commented to encourage the teenager to explain why he had requested an audience with the Council.

"I have decided to leave the Jedi Order Masters," Treb revealed which caused gasps to be heard around the room.

"Are you sure this is the decision you wish to make?" Master Windu inquired as he became more serious, "You will no longer be supported by the Order."

"I understand but I believe my choices in the past few months have been reckless and dangerous to not only myself but also to my friends," Treb replied in complete surety and confidence in the decision being the right one.

"Very well if you go to the hangar control room you will be able to apply for travel to any planet and location of your choice," Master Skywalker explained simply.

"Thank you Masters," Treb said and left the room after bowing respectfully. As he walked down the hallway in the direction of the Hangar Control room he sensed his friends close behind him. Their emotions all mashed together with concern and shock which didn't make this decision any easier for him. They did all manage to catch up to him outside his destination and words were exchanged.

"Look guys I know what you all are going to say," Treb stated simply as he leaned back against the wall behind him, "But I have already made my decision," he added.

"But your home is here," Stret stated as if it was the simplest thing in the Galaxy.

Treb shook his head and replied confidently, "No it isn't."

It was silent for a few moments when Jania spoke, "Are you sure this is what you want Treb?" she asked.

Treb nodded, "I've been thinking about this ever since leaving the medical bay and I'm positive that this is what I need to do," he replied.

Each of them gradually said farewell to Treb before he turned around and entered the room behind him with a few final words, "I promise to stay in touch."

The group then split up to go do different things. Stret, Raven and David had a lesson that they were about to be late for while Jania and Gav went out into the gardens. Bramax, Serin and Ancor, on the other hand, went to one of the sparring halls to practice their lightsaber combat with their Masters which left Ashlyn and Daly alone once again.

"So what should we go and do?" Daly asked curiously, "Neither of us have lessons and I don't know about you but I'm not particularly in the mood for study," he added with slight amusement.

"I have an idea," Ashlyn said as her eyes lit up in excitement and she dragged Daly through the hallways of the Jedi Temple and out the main entrance. It did not take long to realise where she wanted to go and when they reached the spot he picked Ashlyn up in his arms before force leaping up onto a ledge.

"I can do it myself you know," Ashlyn stated slightly annoyed at being carried.

"And what would be the fun in that?" Daly inquired mischievously as he leapt up onto a higher ledge.

"You'll have to put me down now."

"Oh I don't think so-," Daly trailed off as their lips met quickly before he put her down.

"Race you to the top," Ashlyn said as she jumped up and onto the wall scaling it quickly with Daly not too far behind her. In the end, she reached their secret hiding spot first and it didn't take long for him to join her on the rooftop of the Temple.

"Man if Master Windu knew we were up here he would probably throw us out of the Order," Daly said in amusement.

Ashlyn laughed and then agreed swiftly, "That would not surprise me."

Then her face fell as she remembered what had occurred only mere minutes ago with Treb and him leaving the Jedi Order.

"Why is he leaving?" Ashlyn asked no one in particular.

"Treb knows that Padawans who get a disability like his very rarely reach Knighthood and even then they never leave the Temple unless he can prove to the Council that he is capable," Daly said, "It would kill him to be stuck here while we went on missions."

"Hmm, yes that is a good point."

Daly wrapped his arms around Ashlyn as she leant back into him while they watched a ship exit the hangar bay below and leave the atmosphere and system with Treb's force signature along with it. The two Padawans sat there in complete silence for the next few minutes when all of a sudden Daly's comlink began to beep.

Daly groaned as he took it out of his belt pouch and answered the call, "Solak here."

"Daly, it's Eric, I need you on the Scoundrel's Constellation now and make sure you bring Ash and the others if you can," Eric's voice came through the small device.

"Alright we will be there shortly," Daly replied as he pocketed the comlink, "Why is it so hard to get a moment to ourselves?" he asked out loud.

Ashlyn giggled as she kissed him on the cheek and then stood up, "We better not keep Eric waiting."

Daly and Ashlyn arrived at the Scoundrels Constellation to find the Smuggler waiting for them before he then led them onto the ship and into a room that had previously always been locked. The room turned out to be Eric's private office with a desk against the far wall and shelves lining the other walls with a holoterminal and projector in the middle of the room.

"I have to show you both something," Eric announced as he pressed controls on this terminal and a holo image appeared. The image was of a life-sized hooded figure and when it began to speak it was clear that this person was female.

"Jaira?" Daly asked as he then began to listen to what she was saying and was horrified by what he heard.

"Where did you get this Eric?" Ashlyn inquired curiously.

"Inoma went snooping around that apartment on Nar Shaada and found this recording in one of the rooms," Eric revealed, "It's taken me the last year or two to encrypt it."

Ashlyn was about to say something when the recording interrupted her with a particular statement that caught her off guard.

'The new Empire will grow out of the ashes on the backs of the Jedi Order. First I have to get rid of my father who is stuck in the old ways, if he lives any longer my plans will never be seen by the Galaxy. The Sith Lords of the past made the terrible mistake of eradicating the Jedi Order but I will bring them to their knees and they will serve me.'

"I can't listen to any more of this," Daly said as he shut it off and the image disappeared.

"It goes on like that for the entire recording but she does reveal useful information about the plans she has for the next decade," Eric said, "Very detailed plans I might add."

"Does she mention anything about Balmorra?" Ashlyn asked no one in particular, "I highly doubt Treb would go to a planet that he felt would not get attacked," she added, stating her theory.

"I haven't listened to the entire recording but more than possible it is in there somewhere," Eric mentioned.

"I should have killed her when I had the chance," Daly growled in frustration as he stormed out of the room with Ashlyn not too far behind him with a deep level of concern. They wound up on the edge of the Temple gardens looking out over the city and traffic rushing past them below.

"Why?"

"What do you mean?" Ashlyn asked curiously.

"Why did I not kill her on Katarr?" Daly asked himself with an anger-filled voice.

Ashlyn turned to look at him before reaching out and stroking his cheek gently and then she said very simply, "You are not a murderer."

"Ash, I killed my father. He was unarmed and I made the final blow," Daly revealed, "And don't use the excuse of him being dangerous because I already know that but so is Jaira," he added.

"Daly, it wasn't Jaira who was trying to kill all those Younglings and Padawans with the outbreak; it was your father," Ashlyn said.

"Yes and it's my sister who is trying to enslave all Jedi no matter their age," Daly countered, "And what about all those Padawans, Knights and Masters whose bodies are strewn across several planets?"

Ashlyn sat there and listened to him quietly as she did not want to interrupt Daly while he was trying to process all this information and the events of the past as she concluded that he just needed someone to listen to his grievances and concerns.

"Your sister made a mistake when she left that recording at the apartment, we can use it against her," Ashlyn said confidently.

"Yes until she realises that we have the recording and then she will redo all her plans," Daly responded to the idea.

"How about for now we just forget about it okay?" Ashlyn suggested, "As it seems that it is not getting this conversation anywhere," she added as she planted a light kiss on Daly's lips before wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head on his chest.

* * *

"Keep moving!" yelled a Zygerrian slaver as the whip in his hand came down upon the back of a Jedi Master who had stopped walking to look around at their surroundings. The slaver got the desired response much quicker than he had first anticipated as the line then continued to move slowly towards the holding facility. The large structure was filled with specially designed cells that were going to house the Jedi until the new training facility was built for them to begin processing.

"Welcome my lord," the Queen greeted Jaira at the landing platform.

"Greetings your majesty, I hope you have room to accommodate these new arrivals," Jaira said as she bowed slightly in respect.

"Of course," she replied, "Right this way, my men can deal with the goods."

The Zygerrian Queen led Jaira towards the royal building and they sat in a very extravagant lounge where a few of the Queen's personal servants were already waiting to serve them.

"Please help yourself, my lord," the Queen requested as she took a seat on one of the main lavish chairs.

Jaira sat on another chair and picked up a glass from one of the silver serving platters that was being carried around by a young Twi'lek girl who could not have been much older than herself. This, of course, did not bother Jaira at all as she too like the Queen believed that those weaker than herself should serve the strong.

"It should not be long until the facilities are fully constructed for the new slaves to be processed and I have my best people working on the project," the Queen stated simply.

"That is excellent news," Jaira said as she pressed a button on her comlink device and a few seconds later a black-robed figure walked in through the doors.

"Your majesty I would like you to meet my Apprentice Darth Xaeven," Jaira introduced the young teen to the Queen as he lowered his hood to reveal a young face half of which was scarred heavily.

"Greetings Darth Xaeven," the Queen greeted graciously as she became slightly nervous at his presence but as normal the older Zygerrian woman did not let this show.

"My apprentice will be overseeing the project, he will be going on missions every now and then but he will be stationed here at all times when not on a mission," Jaira announced.

"Of course my lord," the Queen confirmed as she decided it would be best to allow this request even though it sounded more like an order.

 **The End**

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_ _That is the end of Book 5, I am terribly sorry for the long cliffhanger. Life got away with me a little too much. The next book will be posted shortly, Adventure of the Templars Book 6: The Last Blow. I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far and please review._

 _Ashlyn_Dubreas._


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